Lies and Ignorance
by Shattered Heartless
Summary: Post Miracle Queen Just without Adrigami happening, Adrien rejects Kagami in my head canon for this.
1. Chapter 1

"**Don't be amused, it's just the news. We are outside the Mayor's hotel, where Chloe Bourgeois is currently staying and has not left since she assisted the supervillain known as Hawkmoth. Despite the accusations against his daughter, the Mayor has refused to comment on the situation. Back to you, Tom."**

Alya

Alya was fed up. Marinette was never going to be capable of speaking to Adrien it seemed and Adrien was never going to see her friends feeling due to his legendary obliviousness. So she was going to give up on that hopeless battle. Adrienette was a sinking ship and it was time to jump on a liferaft. Luka had been forward of his feelings for Marinette, so Lukanette didn't need assistance to happen.

But now Alya was bored, no akuma attacks and not helping Marinette get Adrien's attention meant she didn't have much to do. And with summer starting there would be no homework or class. Then she would have nothing to do. Sure she had her boyfriend to keep her busy but there was only so much of Nino one could handle before it was too much. If she got a job, she wouldn't be able to rush over to any akuma attacks for footage and even an interview if the heroes had time. That would get her fired and she could not afford a bad reference. But would she do then?

The answer came in the form of her new friend: Lila Rossi.

The girls were chatting it up at lunch when she caught Lila glancing at Adrien as he walked in talking to Nino. The model said something with an apologetic look on his face, before leaving the cafeteria. "So you like Adrien?"

Lila panicked, but then realized Alya didn't see her scowl at Adrien. No, she did not like Adrien. Like Maribrat, he knew she was lying about everything and wouldn't fall in line. She tried to pull the gold digger moves on him but Ladybug shut that down hard. Ever since Adrien had been doing his best to avoid her, though he never tried to expose her as Marinette did. But in Alya's eyes, Adrien was an angel who could do no wrong. "Yeah, but who doesn't. I won't even have a chance because Marinette likes him and I don't want to hurt her. She is making it so hard to be her friend and even though she has that nice guitar boy on her, she wants Adrien. So I want to support her and stand aside.

Alya: TRIGGERED!

"Hell no. Marinette can suck this one up and settle for Luka. We gotta get you and Adrien together!"

"Oh, I'm not sure, what if Marinette gets akumatized?" She intended to sour Alya's opinion of Maribrat, not fire her up to set her up with the only other person who knows her real self.

Alya only heard this: Marinette plus negative emotions equals akuma. Akuma equals footage/interviews. This would be just a be a bonus to helping Lila fulfill her dreams with Adrien.

"Nah, we got heroes for that so we don't need to worry about her." As far as Alya was concerned, Marinette could suck it up and settle for Luka.

Nino had heard only the last bit as he approached them. "Hey, dudettes. Worry about who?"

"Marinette. We are going to set up Lila and Adrien."

"That's going to be hard, the dude is super busy all the time because of his dad."

"We can find a way to get him outside." Alya started jumping up and down as she had an idea. "Marinette has his schedule down pat, we just need to check it and see where he will be or when he has time off."

"And Marinette is okay with this then?"

"Well, not yet but she has to learn to suck it up."

"Okay, but there is another issue: Adrien has a crush on Ladybug."

Alya laughs while Lila cringes inside, praying for someone to stop them. "Seriously, I can get over Adrien. Especially for Ladybug."

"No, she will date Chat Noir. That is a fact. Now to find Marinette and convince her to help us."

"She's sick, remember? She wrote her exams at home under teacher supervision yesterday." Alya groaned. That would make things difficult.

Lila tried once again to shut down Alya's hype train, not knowing Alya's hype train lacks two things: Morals and brakes. "Please, we don't need to hurt anyone's feelings. I'm okay with moving on to someone else. Like maybe Kim?"

But Alya didn't care, she had a mission and was ready no matter the cost. Pulling out her phone she called Marinette. "Hey, Alya!"

"Hey, Mari. We got to talk. I have been thinking that maybe you should give up on Adrien and date Luka. Then you can help us set Lila up with Adrien and everyone can be happy." She paused waiting for a response. There was nothing but silence for a solid five minutes. "Girl you there?" The call suddenly ended without Marinette saying a word. "What the heck was that?"

"Maybe her phone was broken? The microphone might have not have been working right," Nino reasoned. "Or she dropped it and can't reach it and the battery died."

"Or she is just jealous and can't get over herself. It's okay, we don't need her to help us. We can do this on our own. To scheming, we go! To the whiteboard of planning!"

Lila seethed in fury. She was going to have to play along and hope Adrien wants to keep his friends happy.

Marinette

Marinette was also seething in fury. The pressures of being the new guardian already were pressing her to her limits. When she fell ill, she surprisingly relaxed. And with Hawkmoth taking a break lately, no attacks since Miracle Queen. The event still haunted her dreams. Fu leaving without his memories. The miracle box changing as she became its owner. All her back up heroes exposed. Finding the gramophone Fu had left for her, which now sits on her desk in the corner of the room, now housing her miracle box.

But then Alya dares tell her who to date? And tell her she needs to help Lila? What changed her mind all the sudden. A butterfly landed on her phone, infecting it. "Princess Justice, we finally meet again."

"No."

"What?"

"No. Leave me alone. I'm too sick to deal with your bullshit."

"But I haven't made my offer yet."

"I don't feel like getting out of bed to steal jewelry for you. Why do you even want them?" Tikki was watching in awe as Marinette refused Hawkmoth's temptation.

"I want to bring someone back from the dead. Someone close to my heart. The miraculous can grant me that."

"Then go get therapy or find a rebound. Why don't you just join Tinder?" Hawkmoth screamed at her before recalling his akuma, it turns white as it flew away. Marinette sighed in relief as Tikki flew over.

"That was close."

"I know Tikki. Ugh, what is Alya thinking? I'm not in love with Luka. I literally just turned him down yesterday. And setting Lila up with Adrien? Nope. We are going to shut her down once and for all."

"What about what Adrien said about taking the high road? He won't approve."

"We got one card to play still: I didn't tell him that she threatened me."

Tikki smiled, knowing that Adrien was Chat Noir and cared for Marinette more than even he does. "That's brilliant Marinette! There is no way he won't help you once he knows that!"

"We need to gather as many celebrities we can. Specifically the ones she claims to have a close relationship with. I have a meeting with Jagged Stone next week for his new album cover and outfits for his tour."

"You can also reach out to Thomas Astruc, Lila said something to Nino about him. Once Adrien is on board he can call him."

"Nice thinking Tikki. But first, I need to get better. Any chance I can get help from a lucky charm?"

"You remember Bubbler?"

"Fine, I'll get better the slow way. But with Lila not messing with my social life, maybe I can relax more."

Adrien

For once he was glad to have a photoshoot on a school day. He missed Marinette and her cheerfulness, even if she seemed uncomfortable around him. In Marinette's absence, Lila had taken the seat behind him, which only soured his mood more. All morning, she went on about how she was going to hang out with celebrities and attend events over the summer. The obvious lies made him sick while his classmates swooned. At least now he was spared from it, with the bonus that he could have the rest of the afternoon off as long as the shoot went well. And he knew exactly what he wanted to do with his free time.

After putting out his best, never missing a beat with his photographer, he was finished in record time. As he went to grab his bookbag, one of his fellow models, Jac, ran over, "Hey, where you off to?"

"A friend of mine is sick, so I'm paying her a visit."

"She single?"

"Yes." Adrien wasn't sure how he felt about his questioning.

"So can I have her number?"

"No, it's not mine to give." Adrien was getting a really bad feeling now, hostility in his tone.

"Fine. Just asking." Jac backed off, his assistant calling him over. But he looked over his shoulder, seeing Adrien leaving the park and entering the nearby bakery. The poster child of the Agreste brand won't stop him from getting what he wants. No one ever did.

Alya

Even as Ms. Bustier lectured, Alya was making notes, but not for the class. She was planning out dates for Lila and Adrien that they could squeeze the model into without him squirming out somehow. Many of them required preparation, but convincing the other girls shouldn't be a problem at all.

She passed notes around the classroom, calling for a meeting immediately after school

Lila, on the other hand, was still pissed. Alya was refusing to back down on her plans, leaving Lila in a pickle. What if Alya managed to get Adrien to take her is a social event where she would be forced to face her so-called celebrity friends. She wouldn't be able to stop them stating they don't know her at all. If the Ladybogger was there, then her illusions will be shattered. That meant she was going to have to be careful all summer long. Why couldn't everyone just fall in line around here?

Adrien

Going to the Dupain-Cheng bakery was always a double treat: the fresh baked goods and the extremely kind owners. Adrien was convinced they were trying to stuff him full at times, offering him free pastries when he visited. "Hi Mrs. Cheng, Mr. Dupain."

Sabine smiled from behind the counter, greeting him while Tom simply nodded before turning his attention back to his baking. "Hello dear. Aren't you supposed to be at school right?"

"I had a photoshoot in the park that finished early and I figured I would stop by and pay Marinette a visit if that is ok with you?"

Sabine beamed, "Of course it is ok with me dear, just let me see if she is awake." She quickly headed up the stairs. "Marinette, Adrien is here to see you."

Marinette panicked, her face flushed red. "What? Why? How? No, no, no. Not now I am a mess!" Tikki tilted her head at her chosen, the look on her face clearly stating 'When are you not?' before hiding in case.

Sabine laughed as she went back down into the bakery, "She is awake in her room. You can go see her up there. Oh, here. Take these too." She handed the boy a plate of cookies.

Adrien smiled, thanking her as he headed into the Dupain-Cheng household. Pausing at the trapdoor, he hesitated before knocking. "Hey, Mari? It's Adrien, can I come in?" A loud shriek of surprise came through the hatch, followed by a quiet "Come in." He looked around, noticing the photos of him on the walls and a familiar gramophone before seeing Marinette on her lounge chair. "Hey Mari, how are you feeling?"

"I, I, I'm better getting. I mean better I get! I am getting better." She seemed freaked out a bit, her face bright red.

'Must be because of the photos,' he thought to himself. They weren't there when he was there to play video games before, clearly taken down before he arrived at that time. "You don't have to be embarrassed about the photos, Marinette. I know you're a fan of my father's brand."

Marinette's internal temperature rises, "Yeah, that's why I have the photos." 'Relax and be chill. Not too chill, just a relaxed chill.' "So what brings you here?"

"I had a photo shoot that ended early, and I needed to ask you for a favor."

"Which is?"

"Like you, I already did the final exams, so I don't need to go to school for the last week. But my father doesn't know about it quite yet so my schedule is clear. So I was wondering if you wanted to hang out next week maybe?"

Marinette swooned inside, Adrien Agreste wanted to spend a whole week hanging out with her. "Sure but I have a meeting on Wednesday with Jagged Stone to show him my design for new album's cover. I'm also showing him my sketches for his tour outfits he requested."

Adrien stared at her wide-eyed, "Jagged Stone is releasing a new album? Awesome!"

"Oops, spoilers. Don't tell anyone bit yeah. No one else knows yet. He left me a copy of it to help channel my 'inner Jagged' for the design work. If you want to you can listen to it." Her stutter was long gone now, but a hint of nervousness could be still heard in her voice.

'Is she really that embarrassed about the photos?'

**God. Adrien, we are forcing you to see a doctor.**

'Who are you?'

**Tom Astuc's replacement. Now shut up and hang out with your 'friend'.**

"That would be awesome! So are you free for the other days?"

"Yeah, mostly. I need to spend some time shopping for fabric and making the outfits he likes. If you want to, you can come fabric shopping with me."

His face lit up, "Sure! I'll bring my wallet." He winked at her. 'Why am I winking like this?'

"No no no! I can pay for it." He pouted, clearly disappointed. "Fine, you can pay for some. But you can explain to your father why you are assisting a rival fashion designer."

"I doubt he will care or take the time to notice. He is out of town and I have a mostly clear schedule."

Marinette tilted her head, "Why are you so eager not to be at school all of the sudden? You were fighting tooth and nail to get out of homeschooling and now you have plans to hide away with me. Not that I don't mind," she added.

Adrien's expression seemed downcast. "Lila," he spat. "She has been brutal all week, talking about her celebrity connections. She just promised Nino to talk to Astruc about getting him on the team for the next Ladybug movie. Oh and told Alya that she would talk to Nadja Chamack about getting her a part-time job as a junior reporter. And to see if she could get everyone a ticket to Jagged Stone's concert."

"Wow seriously?"

"Yeah, and it gets worse. She also claimed that Jagged asked her to design his outfits."

"Perfect, then I can ask Jagged to clarify in interviews that I designed them and disclaim any connections to Lila. The dominos will fall from there." Marinette rubbed hers together, eager for some freshly baked justice.

"But what about taking the high road?"

Marinette suddenly dropped her gaze, looking at her feet as she fiddled with one of her pencils. "There something that happened that I didn't tell you."


	2. Chapter 2

**Don't be amused, it's just the news. Still no comment or appearance from Chloe Bourgeois as she is still hiding inside her father's hotel. Mayor Bourgeois and his wife have both refused to comment. Protesters have arrived, demanding for Chloe to be arrested and sent to trial. A source in the police department claims that they are currently seeking a warrant. We will keep you updated as this story progresses."**

Dupain-Cheng Bakery

Tom and Sabine went about preparing for the after school rush when they heard a loud "WHAT?" from upstairs. Tom gave his wife a questioning look as she shrugged, crossing her fingers. The bakers went back to work, unaware of the embodiment of rage known as Adrien Agreste.

"She did what to you in the bathroom?" Adrien had a very hard time staying calm. It was one thing to tell a few lies, but no one threatens his princess. Hell no.

Marinette played with her pencil, totally surprised by Adrien's sudden mood swing. "She threatened to take away all my friends and leave me all alone. And I may have been almost akumatized twice that day." Adrien's eyes went wider then what should be physically possible. "Adrien, breath, please. Just relax. It already happened and I am still here."

She could have sworn he growled like a cat? "When was this?"

"The day she first came back. And again the day she got me expelled."

"And you never told me?"

"I was trying what you said about taking the high road. I figured nothing would come of it, then she got me expelled and turned everyone against me. Alya still thinks I did those things because Lila said so." Marinette continued to fidget with the pencil nervously.

"Mari?"

"Yea-yeah?"

"Please look at me." Marinette looked at him, face flushed a deep scarlet. "You are my friend and no one is allowed to threaten you." His eyes stared into hers, the anger towards Lila still visible. His face softened as he continued, "Never be afraid to talk to me if something is bothering you. You tell me anything Marinette." The sympathetic, sincere tone in his voice made her heart flutter, taking her breath away. Was it possible to fall in love with someone when you are already in love with them?

"Than-thank you, Adrien. It, it means a lot to me."

"So what were you saying about exposing Lila?"

"I thought you didn't want to anger her?"

"My friends are more important than her feelings." Adrien scowled again. "She has gone farther than I thought she did." He looked her in the eyes again, "You mean a lot more to me than she ever could."

Marinette smiled, telling him her plan to get as many celebrities as they can to disown Lila and her lies. "I can talk to Jagged next week. Maybe you can reach out to some of the people you encountered in your career?"

"Yes, absolutely."

"Oh, Alya called." Marinette struggled to keep her cool, "She playing matchmaker between you and Lila."

"Do we need a new friend circle?"

"Probably, but we should at least give them a chance to redeem themselves."

"So how should we deal with Alya's schemes?"

"Don't tell Nino anything next week, keep them in the dark of what you are doing as much as possible. She will be relying on everything you tell him and I already refused to help keep tabs on your activities."

"You are a good friend."

"I know. So what are you going to do? You got a week to hide before you are busy again."

"We could play along?" Marinette's face twisted with disapproval. "If we play along we can force her to confront her so-called celebrity friends."

"It would be better if we got them on an interview for everyone to rewatch. Besides no reason to make you suffer unnecessarily, right?" Marinette attempted to be smooth. Attempt failed. Her crush was in her bedroom, filled with photos of him, a screensaver that would be a dead giveaway and a calendar filled with his schedule. The last one alone would make him think she was a stalker. Then he wouldn't want to be her friend.

"Marinette!" Adrien's voice snapped her out of her panic. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" 'My crush is only two feet away from me. I am not ok.'

"You seemed to space out." Adrien tilted his head at her, concerned for his friend

Marinette groaned quietly. 'You caught me monologuing,' her inner Ladybug commented. Of course, all that confidence was locked away around Adrien.

He leaned closer, oblivious to the effect he had on her. "Does the idea of me even pretending to date Lila bother you that much? I mean, I think I understand why."

'No, you don't.' "I was thinking of Kagami. How would she feel?"

"Kagami doesn't like me anymore. Something about two Yangs don't work out well? Also said my Ying is right in front of me, but I am too oblivious to see it?" Kagami had been cryptic, saying it's not her secret to tell, but his to figure out for himself.

"Oh."

"Mari?"

"Yeah?"

"Please look at me." Marinette looked at him, seeing the concern in his eyes. "What is wrong with my idea?"

"It just feels too much like lying. And that will only sink us to her level." It was only half a lie. "I rather we go the honest route."

Adrien nodded, completely missing the real reason that was literally evident all around him. "You are right. Fighting a wrong with another wrong isn't going to solve anything. I will do this your way."

Marinette sighed in relief, her jealousy remaining undiscovered. "Thank you, Adrien, it means a lot to me. There have been enough lies."

"You and me against the world remember? I value you as a very good friend and I never want to lose you or see you hurt." Marinette could only squeak as her face turned red. He found it adorable. They focused their attention on celebrities to contact, the first one being Jagged Stone next week. He was accompanying her not only see her awesome designs but make sure she didn't chicken out of telling Jagged about Lila.

Adrien had one goal alone now: stop anyone that tried to hurt his princess. Lila would get justice the right way.

Plagg

Plagg was in a similar mood, a kwami's ultimate allegiance is to the guardian of their assigned Miracle Box. Even without being the guardian, Marinette was still the kindest person to kwami's, not complaining if he asked for cheese, offering cheese threats from the bakery. But he had to admit, watching Adrien freak out was satisfying, after hearing the boy constantly go on about taking the high road. Taking one last look at the oblivious duo, he zipped into the gramophone, Tikki standing watch to warn him when Adrien is ready to leave. As much as he wanted to watch the ensuing mess, he needed to go for a visit.

Arriving in the Kwami's haven, he cried "The cheese master is back!" Multiple kwami's flew out into the center of their realm to greet him. Since Marinette became the guardian, Tikki has been able to visit more often as long as another kwami is keeping watch. Plagg hadn't been able to visit for two weeks, so he was excited to see his friends.

"Plagg!" Sass called, "welcome back!" Other kwami's greeted him, gathering around him.

"Is the guardian still sick?" one called out.

"Is she dating Chat Noir yet?"

"Yes and no. But he is in her room right now, so no one fly out."

"What about the backup heroes?" Kaalki asked.

"Their identities have been exposed, so Ladybug can't call on them anymore. I don't know her plan for when they need back up again."

"What about unifying?" Longg questioned.

"That worked out pretty good with Miracle Queen's army, but Ladybug hasn't said anything to me yet."

The kwamis continued to ask him questions until none were left. Tikki flew in to let them know Adrien was settled in quite well, clearly not intending to leave unless kicked out. Plagg still had some time to send with his fellow kwamis.

Alya

Neither Marinette or Adrien have been answering her messages or calls. Marinette was probably pissed and ignoring her. As for Adrien, he probably was just busy, so dragging Nino along, they head to the park to talk to him. However, they got to the park and found no Adrien. As they asked assistants, who informed them that Adrien finished nearly two hours ago and already left. As to where he went, no one knew. Well, except for a certain brunette model named Jac, who looked at them and decided they had nothing he wanted.

Defeated, they headed back to Alya's house, attempting to reach out to both of them. Once again, no answer.

In Marinette's room, Tikki noted the ringing phones left on the chaise, out of Adrien and Marinette's sight. Every time Alya and Nino had called, she silenced the phones immediately. "Yes!" Marinette's cry of victory rang out as she pummeled Adrien in Ultra Mecha Strike III.

"Seriously, what is up with them? Marinette, I can kinda understand, but Adrien too?"

"Maybe they are on a date?"

"Not funny, Nino. We need to set up Adrien and Lila, not Adrienette. That ship was hopeless anyway. Hey, let's make sure Luka knows to chase Marinette." Pulling out her phone, she called up Juleka. "Hey Juleka, can I talk to Luka? Thanks." Putting her hand over the phone's speaker, she whispered, "At least some people know how to use their phones." Nino grunted in agreement. He did that a lot.

"Alya?" They heard Luka's voice over the phone.

"Hey, Luka. I just wanted to make sure you are still pursuing Marinette."

"Is this some kind of joke?" The hurt in his voice couldn't be more clear. "She just told me there is no chance for me and her because she loves someone else."

"Don't worry Luka, we will set her straight."

"What do you mean?"

"Once we convinced her that Adrien belongs with Lila, she will come running back to you."

"Alya."

"Yeah, Luka?"

"Do yourself a favor and stop meddling with other people's lives. Clearly, you don't have what it takes to play matchmaker." With that Luka hung up on her, leaving Alya and Nino to debate on their next course of action.

"Spam them?'

"Yes."

Lila

After trolling on AO3, she set about trying to make plans to avoid any interactions that would lead to Adrien taking her on a date. It would be tricky, as she had an image to maintain. That's when a brilliant idea hit her. The tomato kid, what was his name the artist who had a crush on Marinette but everyone forgot about. She just needed to openly pursue him and maybe that will get Alya off of her back.

What she didn't know was that Adrien was about to fall madly in love with Marinette and that tomato boi (seriously, what is his name) is gay with the kid from Big Hero 6.

As she schemed, her email tab pinged: A new chapter had just got posted on the fanfiction website. She early went back to trolling, a simpler task than weaving lies over everyone's eyes.

Adrienette

After losing yet again to Marinette, Adrien sagged back in his chair, letting the stress of the last ten minutes release. He let his gaze wander around the room, once again focusing on the gramophone. There was something familiar about it. Could it be? No. Ladybug had told him Fu's gramophone was mailed to his new home, an address she kept to herself. "He doesn't remember us anymore. If we seek him out it will leave Paris defenseless and endanger him. If we leave him alone, he can finally be at peace." Adrien didn't argue, though he was a bit jealous of the closer relationship Ladybug shared with Fu.

Marinette having a gramophone that looked actually like the one Fu owned, where the miracle box was hidden before the Feast senti-monster attacked, was just a mere coincidence. "Hey Mari, when did you get a gramophone?"

Marinette panicked internally. "Oh, that old thing? It's just a goodbye gift. From my uncle. Absolutely nothing special about it." Luckily for Marinette, Adrien's obliviousness to important facts was legendary, meaning he would never be able to hear the panic in her voice. On the other hand, he would never be able to figure out that she has a crush on him either.

"I think it's cool. Do you ever listen to it?"

"No, I have no records, I don't think it even works." 'I only use it to hide kwami's and their miraculous,' she thought to herself.

"That's too bad." This is when once again his phone rings, this time the two teens not distracted. It was Adrien's father's assistant, Natalie.

"Adrien. It is late and you have not called or texted your location." Her cold tone was clear over the phone.

"Sorry Natalee, I was visiting a friend."

"I am sending your driver to pick you up and bring you home."

"Okay." She hung up on him without another word. He flashed Marinette an apologetic look.

She gave him a similar one, "Sorry I got you in trouble."

He shook his head smiling, "This was worth it. And now I know I won't be bored next week when we hang out together."

Marinette could melt to the floor right there and then. Not only would she be seeing a lot of the love of her life, but he was excited to hang out with her. "I'll try not to disappoint."

Before he could comment, his phone pinged with a message from his bodyguard. This also allowed him to see multiple missed calls and messages from Alya and Nino, each demanding him to respond. "Looks like our friends are also trying to reach out to us." Marinette checked her phone, seeing a similar amount of messages. "How did we miss all of these?" Marinette shrugged as she saw Tikki hover behind Adrien, giving her a wink before zipping into the miracle box. Where was she doing?

Marinette and Tikki had a deal: Tikki can go in the miracle box for a visit only if Marnette had another miraculous and kwami out to stand watch. That way if an akuma attacked, the kwami on watch can retrieve her right away. "We were pretty focused on gaming." Alya's last message read, 'WTF? You told Luka he didn't have a chance and rejected him? Why didn't you tell me? CALL. ME. NOW.'

Adrien saw her frown, "What's wrong?"

"Alya found out that I rejected Luka. He didn't take it well from what I heard from Juleka, but he was understanding and told me it's ok."

"You rejected Luka? I thought you two were a thing?"

Marinette shook her head, "No, he liked me, but my heart belongs to someone else."

Before Adrien could ask who, his bodyguard honked the horn outside. He was clearly getting frustrated waiting for him. "I should probably go, but I'll text you later about next week?" She could only nod, smiling at him. "Okay, cya later Mari!"

"B-b-bye Adrien!" Her stammering was still there but getting better. As soon as he left her room, closing the door behind him, she turned her attention on the gramophone. What was Tikki doing? As if an answer, Tikki flew out, with Plagg in tow. The two kwami's looked like a pair of deer caught in headlights. "Plagg why are you here?" Then eyes widened, a sudden realization hitting her. As she started to tremble, Plagg opened his mouth to try and make up an excuse when Marinette burst out in laughter. "As if Adrien is even capable of being Chat Noir!"

Plagg decided screw it, stating plainly, "He is."

Lila lurking in her Parents Basement

Marc, Big Hero 6 kid is Marc!

Now, who is tomato boi again? She has been breaking the fourth wall by reading fanfics a lot lately and they all call him the tomato lol.


	3. Chapter 3

**"Don't be amused, it's just the news. Protest outside of the Mayor's hotel is getting violent as the Mayor's own bodyguards are threatening to open fire if the crowd doesn't leave. We advise all protesters to leave to prevent loss of life."**

Plagg and Tikki

Plagg groaned. Sure he as the kwami of bad luck, but this was ridiculous. Marinette was on the floor, laughing. "Wow, I expected Tikki to pick someone a bit more serious than this."

"Plagg, be nice. You said something that while true, sounds ridiculous."

Before he could retort, Plagg saw Marinette freeze, her eyes opened wide. She slowly got up and stared at Tikki. "What?"

Tikki gave her a blank stare, "What?"

"What did you just say?" Tikki simply looked away, trying to find a way to change the subject. "Did you say that it's true." Marinette steadied herself. Suddenly she was back to the second time Reflecta was akumatized, putting on Chat Noir's ring. The ring that turned silver when she put it on and after she detransformed again. Which was exactly just like the ring Adrien wore. "Oh god." Marinette grabbed her hair, "Adrien is Chat Noir."

She looked at Tikki, her panic radiating in waves. Tikki sighed, "Well shit."

"Language, Sugarcube." Plagg smirked.

Before Tikki could tear off his tail, Marinette fainted. "Marinette! Marinette! Great look at what you did fuzzball!"

Just as Plagg opened his mouth, the trapdoor opened, a concerned Adrien looking around. "Uh, Mari?" Tikki zipped off into hiding while Plagg did a little happy dance over the unconscious guardian. Adrien spotted him, starting to scold his kwami when he saw Marinette laying there. "Marinette!" He was up in front of her in an instant. "Plagg what happened?"

"I told her you were Chat Noir."

"Why? My identity is supposed to be a secret, no one can know! You told me that!"

Marinette stirred, "Adrien? What happened?"

"You fainted, are you ok?"

"Yeah, not sure what happened though."

Adrien sighed in relief, "I just heard you fall. Are you sure you are ok?"

"Yes, I am fine." {No, I am not ok. My crush is my superhero partner. I am not ready to deal with this.}

"Ok, if you're sure." Adrien simply wanted to get Plagg out of there before he gave Marinette a heart attack or who knows what. "Do need anything?"

"No, I am just gonna lay down." She flashed him a shy smile, struggling to keep it together.

"Okay then," a car horn interrupted, a sight panicked on his face at the sound. "Sorry, I gotta go. Text you later?"

"Ye-eah. Bye."

"Bye." The second Adrien left her room, she sagged in relief.

"Tikki, get out here. Now."

Tikki reluctantly came out of her hiding place behind the gramophone. "Marinette, you need to take a deep breath."

"Seriously? I just found out the love of my life is my superhero partner. The same superhero partner who has professed his love to me multiple times. Who gave me roses and set up a romantic candlelit evening. Oh no." Marinette whirled around to face Tikki, her face the definition of panic. "I rejected Adrien Agreste multiple times."

"Seriously, calm down. Use the breathing technique Fu taught you." Marinette forced herself to calm down, breathing steadily. Sensing the young guardian was calmed, or what passed for calm with Marinette, Tikki continued, "So you are ok with Adrien being Chat Noir?"

Marinette tilted her head frowning at the kwami, "Yeah why not? The guy I love more than anyone and the guy I trust with my life is the same guy. Ladybugs are lucky, but this is miraculous." She paused, waiting for Tikki to laugh. Tikki glared at her, "Oh come on, you are always saying I should try to be more relaxed and joking."

"Puns are as horrible as camembert," the kwami stated, sticking her tongue out in disgust. Her expression became serious once again, "You sure about this though?"

"Yeah, though I wish he paid more attention to Marinette rather then Ladybug."

"He was literally just here to visit you."

"True, but he is in love with Ladybug. I want him to love Marinette." Marinette pouted, "He never even noticed me, probably because Ladybug was always outshining me."

"But Marinette, you are Ladybug, in and out of the suit."

"I know, Ladybug is me with a mask. But why her over me?"

"Maybe he likes what he sees." Tikki laughed as Marinette combusted, her mind plowing right into the gutter.

She struggled to speak, heat radiating off her, "Why, why would you say that?"

"Just a theory. I'm kidding. He was clearly in love with you since you took down Stoneheart."

"But how can I get him to notice Marinette? My insecurities demand to find out how he would feel about me before I drop the mask."

"But what about the rule?"

Marinette looked directly into Tikki's eyes, "I lost my mentor, Luka isn't talking to me and Alya is drifting away from me, not to mention the rest of the class. Oh, and did I mention I protect a magical box of jewelry with gods that grant you powers." She sighed, "I just need a win for once and this is that win. He is the only other person who can understand all of this and be able to confide in him without keeping secrets would be a relief."

Tikki considered it for a moment, then nodded her agreement. "Okay, I approve."

"Now to get his attention…"

Alya

"What do you mean he was spotted at the Dupain-Cheng Bakery? No, no, I'll talk to her myself. Thanks, Alix." She hung up her phone, groaning. Marinette was going to need a serious talking to. Right after she told her that Lila was the one for Adrien, she invites him over and hogs him all afternoon. What kind of friend does that? And what is Luka's deal? Seriously, was Marinette some kind of unhinged psychopath trying to ruin lives? Dialing up Marinette's number, she was met once again with voicemail. That didn't make sense. If she was with Adrien, she would have called Alya to scream in joy. Something was up and she was going to dig until she had an answer.

Nino sent her a text, stating that Adrien finally texted back. Apparently, Adrien was paying so much attention to Marinette that he never noticed them calling him. Now Alya had two choices: let Adriennette fix themselves and be happy or tear them apart for good and set them on the right paths. "The second one obviously! Marinette just has to make amends with Luka. Besides, Lila has way more connections than her, making her a perfect choice for Adrien to bring to social events." This is the way.

Adrien

He paced around his room, staring at his phone. Marinette had texted him back, assuring him she was ok, but he was not convinced. "Maybe I should visit her as Chat Noir?"

Plagg perked up. Usually, when Adrien went on about a girl it was Ladybug, making him bored in an instant. But now he couldn't stop worrying about Marinette, Plagg saw his chance to finally make his chosen crack and fall for Marinette. "She is probably helpless, unable to call for help."

"Plagg claws out!" Without another thought, he was out into the night. Before he knew it, he was on the rooftop of the Dupin-Cheng bakery. Dropping down onto Marinette's balcony, Chat turned around and jumped. Sitting in her chair wrapped in a blanket, Marinette's eyes were wide before narrowing.

"Chat Noir? What are you doing here?"

He felt heat rising to his face, unsure how to proceed. "I was just running around for patrol, nothing to worry about purricess."

"Really? That's a relief." She could barely keep the sarcasm out of her voice. "So how are you?"

"Me? I'm okay I guess. Hawkmoth has been quiet since Miracle Queen," his voice faded away, no doubt also remembering that awful day everything went wrong. Marinette couldn't stop thinking about it herself.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"There isn't much to talk about. I'm mostly worried about Ladybug. She blames herself for what happened." He paused unsure if he should even be telling a civilian all this.

Marinette used his silence to move up beside him, leaning forward on the railing. "If you can't tell me more, that's okay. I understand." Chat signed in relief. "So how's life?"

"Well, I'm getting nowhere with Ladybug. I tried moving on again, but I only ended up hurting a friend."

"Sounds like my own love life." She didn't mean to say it, not when the love of her life was literally next to her. "It's like he doesn't see me more than just a friend."

"Really? How can any guy not notice you?"

"I have never been able to speak full sentences since the day after I first met him. And right before Loveeater, I had a chance to finally confess. But I messed that up, stepping aside for a girl I just became friends with. I didn't want to lose her over a boy, but it hurt watching them eat that ice cream."

"Ice cream?" Chat gave her a questioning look.

"Andre's ice cream. It's said those whose flavors are combined and eaten together will forever be in love." She could see Chat's eyes widen as he started to put the pieces together. "I guess I was just afraid he would reject me for her if I choose blueberry and mint."

"Who is this guy?" Chat could barely ask the question, but he had to know.

"Adrien Agreste." She smiled at his silence. The flirty hero that was actually her reserved friend never saw it coming. "I know what you are going to say, that he just a celebrity crush but hear me out. When I first met him, I hated him. But then he exposed his flaws to me, showing the real him. Being in the same class as him has allowed me to get to know him better and I only fell harder."

Marinette's voice faded out as Chat sank deeper inside of himself. Marinette has a crush on him? Since the day after they met? The more he thought about it, the more everything made sense. Her stuttering only around him, her shyness, awkward moments. How did he not notice before? "Chat?" Marinette's concerned voice broke him out of his daze.

"Yeah?"

"You okay? You seem distracted."

"Yeah, I'm fine, just a bit… tired? Yes, it is way past this kitten's bedtime. Good night, purrincess!" With that, Chat bolted, leaving a smirking Marinette behind him.

Time for him to feel flustered for once. As she picked up her sketchbook and turned to head back inside, Tikki flew out of the blanket, vibrating violently. "Marinette, please make it stop."

Transforming, she opened her yoyo, fifty-two messages popping up from Chat Noir. Opening one up, it read: Please help! I don't know what to do and Plagg never helps. "Looks like someone is freaking out, this ought to be good." Calling him, she waited until his face appeared. "Chat, this better be good."

"I need to talk, face to face."

"Okay, I'm at the Dupain-Cheng Bakery right now. I'll meet you at the Eiffel Tower."


	4. Chapter 4: Marinette the Cat Fan

"**Don't be amused, it's just the news. Protesters have moved to safer areas, but are still calling for the arrest of Chloe Bourgeois. The police are still not making a move."**

Adrien

Adrien was uncertain about what to do. He flashbacked to his conversation with Ladybug the previous night. She had listened to him freak out about how a friend in his civilian life just told him about her crush on his civilian self. He had asked her for advice on how to deal with it, but she simply told him to take it slow and not freak out all at once.

But once he got home, he started to freak out some more. Marinette had a crush on him and had helped him at the skating rink despite it. Then again she let her feelings take the backseat at Andre's. His eyes opened wide. "Oh god!"

Plagg perked up, "Finally! What do you offer me, peasant?"

"The wax museum!"

"Replace the wax with cheese and I will approve your offering."

"No! At the wax museum when I tried to prank Mari."

"One of your greatest hits in my books. If I had a go pro, I would make a montage. Maybe multiple montages, I mean you screwed up a lot. With your fanbase, we could go viral. Then buy tons of cheese!"

"She practically confessed her feelings right there, thinking I was a wax statue! And then I told her I really like her being my friend." He rolled over, planting his face in his pillow. "Why does this happen to me?"

"Hey kid, remember that poem from Valentine's Day? And how you thought for two seconds it was Marinette?"

"Shut up, Plagg."

"I see no cheese, therefore I will make fun of you being socially oblivious."

Now he was sitting in a random cafe only three blocks, staring at his text messages with Marinette.

**Marinette**: Good morning sunshine! 3

That was sent three hours ago at seven am. He had no clue what to do and the heart emoji did not help. He remembered his conversation with Kagami when he turned her down. "I'm sorry, but I love someone else."

She stared at her feet for a minute, then looked at him with tears in her eyes. "It's Marinette isn't it?"

Adrien was shocked, "What? She is just a good friend."

"Oh cut the crap, Adrien! You are always talking about her and how amazing she is. You couldn't stop staring at her when her hair was down. And just now when she left, you wouldn't stop staring after her. If you are going to reject me, at least be honest with me."

"I am! I am in love with Ladybug, not Marinette!"

"Then why is it blueberry and mint and not strawberry and mint?" Adrien looked at the ice creams that they have been eating, now realizing they were different. Why did Andre change the order? Before he could voice the question, Miracle Queen's swarm swept through the city, Marinette the only back up hero he knew of that wasn't controlled.

He remembered the relief he felt when Multimouse wasn't present. Now he wasn't sure if it was because he didn't have to fight someone who used three miraculous at the same time, not to mention carry the rest as well. Or was he concerned more for her safety and was relieved she wasn't stung? He groaned again, back in reality, too nervous to send a text saying good morning.

"Look what the cat dragged in!" He looked up to see Alya, heading towards him as if on a warpath. He chuckled to himself nervously. He was in trouble. "So you busy today?" He opened his mouth but she clearly wasn't in a listening mood, "No? Good! I need you to break Marinette's heart then come with Lila, Nino and I to an arcade where we will ditch you with Lila. I mean definitely not ditch you with Lila! Not that it would be a bad thing."

"No."

"Excuse me?"

"No."

"What?"

"I said no."

"Why?"

"Because I value Mari's friendship and care about her. Also, I agree with her that Lila is lying about everything."

Alya's jaw dropped. "You too? Since when?"

"Since she first showed up. She tried to claim that her pendant was a miraculous handed down by her family but Ladybug showed up and shut her down."

Alya shook her head, "No, no. Lila must have been wrong or Ladybug was trying to make sure she wouldn't become a target of Hawkmoth." Adrien gave her a look that clearly told her she was talking crazy. Glaring at him, she stormed out of the cafe, head to the Dupain-Cheng Bakery.

He looked back at his phone, finally deciding to text Marinette back.

**Adrien**: Good morning to you too! Heads up, Alya is on a warpath headed to your parents' bakery.

**Marinette**: Good thing I'm not home ;)

**Adrien**: Huh?

**Marinette**: Look outside ;) 3

Adrien glanced out the window and saw Marinette walking towards the door, waving when she saw him look her way. He could barely raise his hand, a small smile showing between two bright red lights known as his cheeks. What is wrong with him? "Hi, Adrien!"

"Hi Mary, Murry, I mean Mari!" He could hear Plagg laughing inside of his jacket. Marinette didn't seem to notice, smiling brightly at him. Did she always look this pretty? The first thing he noticed was her hair was in a simple ponytail today. Second, was she was wearing a simple Chat Noir themed outfit, black t-shirt with a neon green paw print. She completed it with neon green pants with a trail of black paw prints trailing up her right leg. Was Marinette always such a huge Chat Noir fan?

"So should we bail before Alya comes back or are you waiting for an order?" She didn't miss a beat. Not a single stutter or mispronunciation. She was proud of herself for it, finally able to speak to her crush without foaming at the mouth.

Adrien was too busy tripping over himself, unsure if it was her crush on him or her new outfit. "Order I not did yet. I mean I not did yet order." {Plagg please use your cataclysm on me and free me.}

Marinette tilted her head then laughed. "Talking like Yoda today? I don't think it's a good idea. You could say it's pawful." Adrien was speechless, eyes wide, jaw dropped. Marinette giggled to herself, "What? Cat got your tongue?"

He swore he was about to drool. Here was a cute girl wearing clothes dedicated to him, using cat puns on him. He was dead, so freaking dead.

Lila the lying thot

She finally tracked down the gullible redhead known as Alya, stomping angrily out of the bakery Maritrash's parents owned. This was a good sign. "Hi, Alya! How are you today?"

"Where is she?"

"Who?"

"Marinette. I need to have a word with her."

"Why?"

Alya sighed, "Because she is refusing to see reason. She rejected Luka and has been ignoring my calls."

Lila ran to catch up to the angry blogger. "Maybe she is just busy?" Lila would love nothing more than to see Alya rip spineless Maribrat a new one, but she had to pretend to be the caring girl who just wants to be friends with everyone.

"If she is too busy to reply to my messages, then she would be in her room, which she isn't." Sighing, she continued, "Well at least I know where Adrien is. I can greet him with you, then fake an excuse to leave you two alone."

Lila panicked, "No, you really don't have too. I can help you find Marinette."

"I don't think so…" Alya trailed off as she spotted Adrien and Marinette, together in the cafe. "Oh no you don't."

Adrien

He spotted Alya first, the enraged expression on her face jerking him out of his daze. "Uh, we got an angry Alya coming, with Lila."

Marinette glanced over her shoulder, then grabbed his hand, "Hurry this way before they catch us. Adrien immediately obeyed, getting deja vu of when Ladybug ordered him around. Did he have a type? Marinette pulled him around the little wall separating the rest of the restaurant from the street side. Alya stormed in through the entrance with a nervous Lila in tow, headed straight for the booth they just vacated. With the angry blogger's back turned to them, Marinette bolted for the door, dragging Adrien behind her. Yeah, he definitely had a type.

Marinette directed him in an alley, motioning him to stay quiet. An angry Alya stormed by, a freaked out Lila following her. They waited for a few minutes, then he decided to break the silence, "So, that was almost cat-tastrophic."

She glared at him. "What?"

"That was terrible. Just terrible."

"You wound me."

"I don't care, it's still terrible." She gave him a deadpanned look, ignoring the hurt look on his face. He pouted, making her hesitate. "Stop that."

"Stop what?" He tried hard not to smirk.

"That thing you are doing with your face," she growled, cheeks turning red.

He failed, starting to smirk, "Are you bothered by it?" wiggling his eyebrows at her.

She looked away from him scowling, then looked back with an evil smile. "I think I should feed you to the wolves."

"You wouldn't."

"You never know. I am secretly evil and if I am pushed the wrong way, I could betray you."

"Please don't. I am a poor helpless boy desperate for love."

Marinette burst out laughing. "Desperate? Yes. Helpless? Definitely. Poor? Nope, but you forgot to mention that you are sheltered." He gave her a hurt look. "I'm just kidding."

"Seriously please hide me."

"Only if you take me to a movie."

"Deal."


	5. Chapter 5:Monday

"**Don't be amused, it's just the news. Police officer Agent Roger has reported no warrant has been granted. It is suspected that the judges have been bribed by the mayor in order to keep his daughter from facing the law."**

Alya and the true fox

As Ms. Bustier was opening the review lesson, Lila glanced over at Alya. The violent blogger was on a rage Saturday. She had managed to convince Alya that she thought she saw Maribrat and Adrien, allowing the redhead to calm down. Alya had then suggested that they go see a movie, where they almost ran into to Adrien and Marinette again. Thankfully, she was saved by Nino's timely call, asking if they wanted to meet up. They sat there as Alya vented about how Adrien's one day off was spent with Maribrat instead of his good friends. Lila didn't care too much and had spent most of the time plotting on how to drive a wedge between them and Adrien. Her plotting was interrupted when the one person she was ever truly scared of arrived: Kagami.

"Hello Alya, Nino." She didn't even give Lila a second of her time. Kagami was on a tight schedule and couldn't afford to waste time. "I couldn't help but over hear you shouting about Marinette. Is she okay?"

"She is okay, but when I find her she won't be. Marinette broke Luka's heart and has been ignoring my calls. I told her the plan is to set up Lila and Adrien and she hung up on me."

Kagami shook her head at Alya, "You clearly forgotten Marinette's passion for Adrien, she talked to me when she was questioning whether or not to turn Luka down."

Alya frowned, "She didn't even say anything to me."

"I was there when he called, she felt terrible about turning him down, but now I feel like things are on the right course if she and Adrien are out on the town together." Before Alya could retort, Kagami's phone went off, "Sorry, but I must go. It was nice seeing you two." With that she spun on her heel and headed out.

"What a.."

"Babe, don't. Can't be giving Hawkmoth more akumas now."

It took all her effort not to sneer right there in class at the memory. She glanced behind her towards tomato head. Perhaps it was time to put her plan in motion. Or should she reconsider? She switched her look to across the alse, looking at Kim. He was a simple guy, easy to manipulate. And as far as she knew, no one else has a claim. That she knew of.

Adrien

He stood outside the Dupain-Cheng bakery, unsure whether or not to enter. Not quite recovered from his ordeal Saturday, his legs seemed stuck to the ground. At the movies, he managed to act normal, even convincing her to let him pay for the tickets and snacks. And he would argue with her every time to let him pay, because the pout she makes when someone pays for her is the cutest thing in the world. Which was the second time he thought she was cute in the same day.

Plagg couldn't stop laughing since about when he struggled to tell Marinette that he liked her Chat Noir themed outfit and that she looked cute wearing it. She blushed lightly, thanking him. From there it was an awkward silence which she broke saying, "I guess you could say I'm the cat's meow." Adrien's jaw dropped so hard he swore there was a dent in the pavement. First she had been texting him hearts. Then she showed up in a Chat Noir themed outfit. And then she drops cat puns the whole time. Due to being sheltered and only having Chloe as a friend weakened his social abilities to the point where he can't tell if she is flirting.

But he did know that she has a crush on him, and has been dropping support and appreciation for Chat Noir all around him. It's almost as if she knew he was Chat Noir and admitted her crush to Chat Noir knowing she was confessing to Adrien. If only he truly knew. Whatever it was, he couldn't help but admit he was starting to fall for designer and was both nervous and excited to spend time with her.

And Plagg won't help at all. At least he won't help Adrien that is.

Marinette

Despite her plans for finalizing designs for Jagged Stone's tour outfits and merch, she was helping out in the bakery. After helping a customer, she spotted the love of her life standing outside. Marinette smirked to herself. According to Plagg's reports, she had definitely knocked him off balance and had him spinning in circles. Maybe today she would ease up a bit. But then she remembered that CHAT NOIR, punning annoying Chat Noir was the guy who had been able to make her a drooling mess with one look.

She pulled out her phone and set him a quick text.

**Marinette**: If you are worried about how you look, I can see you and you look purrfect ;) 3

The way his cheeks lit up made her smile widely. It was extremely satisfying. Plagg snuck up on the counter, careful to stay out of sight. "Please leave some part of him alive. We still need him to fight Hawkmoth."

"I know, I know. But it's so fun to tease him. Especially when he doesn't know that I know that he knows."

"I need more cheese."

"What happened to the wheel I got you?"

"I ate it."

"You are going on a diet." Before Plagg could protest, Adrien entered the bakery, rubbing the back of his neck nervously, "Hi Adrien!" She beamed at him.

"Hi Mari," Adrien stuttered slightly, "Did I come to early? I mean I can come back later, or if you don't want me here at all that's ok to?"

Marinette giggled, making his already flushed cheeks grow darker. "Adrien, I invited you here, remember? I'm just helping my parents with the morning rush, which is almost over." He nodded understandably, clearly still embarrassed. She was tempted to tell him that she knew he was Chat Noir and that she was Ladybug. No, he had to earn that knowledge by asking her out. "Once I'm done helping here we can go upstairs." She looked at him, frowning did you have breakfast?"

Adrien hesitated, he did have breakfast just the model diet version that didn't support his secret superhero activities. "Yeah, I had breakfast." Marinette frowned at him, clearly catching his hesitation and not buying it. He sighed, "It was just the regular diet my father says is necessary for modeling."

Marinette's frown didn't go away, she knew that he was not getting enough food, unless the dietitian secretly knows Adrien is Chat Noir. "Here take a few croissants. you need to eat properly, not barely." He opened his mouth to protest, but then saw the concern in her eyes as she shoved a paper plate in his hands. "No buts, you can feed yourself or I can shove them down your throat."

He took the plate meekly and sat down at a table along the wall as another customer came in. Marinette gave the lady her order and accepted the payment, entering the transaction into the register. Once that was finished, she glanced at him to make sure he was still eating before heading back to talk to her parents. Adrien was simply running another similarity between Marinette and Ladybug. One time on patrol, she had brought some treats which he tried to refuse due to his diet. She glared him down and made it clear that if he didn't eat the right amount of food with the amount of exercise he got as a superhero, she will shove the food down his throat. Yep, he has a type.

Sabine looked up as her daughter approached, smiling knowingly. "Adrien is here?" Marinette looked surprised, nodding her head. Sabine laughed, "Dear, we could hear you threatening him if he didn't eat. Maybe go a little bit easier on him? Your father and I rather have him as a son-in-law rather than scared away."

Marinetteflushed, "Mooomm," she complained.

"You're the one who spent how long swooning over him?" Sabine smiled at her, "I'm taking over the front. It has slowed down enough, so you can take him upstairs to your room. But no fooling around, or do we need to have the talk again?" Marinette's entire face was beat red, she could not go through that again. She nodded, then headed to fetch Adrien before her mother could embarrass her in front of him. As she exited the kitchen, she snagged a plate of cookies that didn't make the test for going on the selves to sell to customers. To her approval, Adrien had finished the croissants she had given him and was waiting patiently for her.

"My mom said they don't need my help down here anymore, so we can go upstairs to my room." He nodded, getting up to follow her upstairs into the apartment above the bakery.

Kagami

She sat in her second class of the day, bored out of her mind. Her grades were excellent and she need not worry about final exams. Luka, on the other hand, was in need of help. She had talked to Marinette about rejecting him, but she was not there for the actual fact. When he biked by en route to a delivery, she noted he didn't carry his guitar no more. Nor did he give a friendly smile or wave when he saw her, he just kept going. Kagami had originally thought it was an off day, but then it happened again and again. Clearly something was off and she intended to find out.

Reaching out to the goth girl, Juleka is her name, she had learned when Luka gets off of work and what route he takes to go home. Her plan was to hopefully catch him and get his attention. Kagami sighed quietly, careful not to draw attention to herself. She excelled at extracurriculars, but her interpersonal skills were poor. Maybe she should call Marinette at lunch for some advice on how to go about this.

Lila the little piece of crap Thomas forces us to smell and won't flush away

She strode over to Kim, deciding he would be way easier to manipulate than Nathaniel. Kim was switching out his books for their next class while thinking of dares for everyone. "Hey Lila, wanna be dared?"

The fox smirked, all to easy. "I have a dare for you actually." Kim instantly stopped what he was doing, ready to prove his physical superiority.

"I'll do anything because I'm the bravest and strongest of all!"

Lila let out a fake giggle, "Well in that case, I dare you to take me on a date tonight."

Kim smiled, "Dare accepted. Lila, will you go out on a date with me tonight?"

"Yes, of course Kim." Giving him her contact info, she walked away smiling. Maybe now Alya would stop trying to set her up with Adrien. Little did she know that she made a worse enemy, as Alix listened to the exchange with narrowed eyes.

Marinette and Adrien

Marinette showed Adrien the outfits she had made for Jagged Stone's upcoming summer tour. She also showed off the shirts she had designed for merch, loving the way he was so eager to check everything out she designed. After fanning over all the cool outfits she had made, he excitedly checked out all of her sketches, openly admiring her talent at both design and drawing. He flipped through with her permission as she worked on her website. Her goal was to have it ready the same time Jagged released his new album so he could name drop her brand.

She arranged categories for shirts, pants, socks, sweaters, scarves and even included a special tag for Ladybug and Chat Noir themed clothing. Adrien noticed some of the images and slowly crept up on her, looking over her shoulder to see the various photos she had taken. "What is this?"

Marinette forced herself not to jump as she felt his warm breath near her neck. "My website that I am setting up for my designs. I want to get my designs out there so I can get some more commissions and hopefully noticed by some big name labels." She gestured to the rack full of Jagged Stone's orders. "If I have it ready by the tour, then more people will hear of it after I launch it."

"Is there anything I could do to help?" Adrien asked as he reached into his bag for his laptop.

Marinette bit her lip as she considered his offer. She couldn't ask him to post it on his social media because that might cause his father's wrath for advertising a rival brand. But he could help arrange the site a bit and upload her photos. Looking at him, she knew he was going to be disappointed if she said no. "Here, I'll give you the wifi password and permission to access and edit the current site. You can help me add products to the site. Here is a file with the photos and information for each. All you have to do is copy them over to the format I have set up." A week ago, she would have never been able to give out such clear instructions to him without failing miserably. Despite always saying their identities had to stay a secret, she found herself wishing she found out earlier.

"Like this?"Adrien's question jerked her out of her thoughts, turning her attention to his laptop screen. He had entered a Ladybug hoodie, listing the prices, sizes and ordering details.

"Like that," she nodded her approval, swiveling her chair back to her computer. The duo got absorbed into the work, Adrien asking for approval or complimenting her designs here and there. They didn't know what time it was until Tom poked his head through the trapdoor, inviting them down for lunch. They were eagerly eating the sandwiches he had made for them when Marinette's phone rang. Checking it, she was relieved to see it was Kagami instead of Alya. "Hello?"

"Hello, Marinette. I have been keeping an eye on Luka and something is wrong with him. I was planning on talking to him about it but I am," there was a slight hesitation in her voice, "unsure about how to do so."

"Just try asking what's wrong or if he wants to talk."

"Okay, I will try that. Thank you, Marinette." With that Kagami hung up, clearly busy on her end. Adrien gave her a questioning look, "What was that all about?"

"She wants to talk to Luka, Kagami had noticed that he is not okay and wanted to ask him what's wrong."

"That's probably a good idea." He paused, then cautiously asked, "How often do you and Kagami chat?"

"Since friend's day, when we can. Although we had a bit of a girl's night after the Miracle Queen mess."

Adrien panicked, but attempted composed himself. "So what did you all talk about, praying Kagami didn't tell Mari about the ice cream mix-up. {Was it really a mix-up? Or was it the right result?} he thought to himself.

Marinette smirked at him, "What happens at girl's night stays at girl's night." She burst giggling as Adrien dramatically sighed and dropped his head on the table, pouting at her. They were interrupted when Marinette's phone rang again. It was Alya.

Alya and Nino

The couple were in a good mood, eating lunch while enjoying each other's company when Lila came over, a wide smile on her face. "Guess what!"

Nino gave her a blank and said, "I give up, what?" Alya elbowed him hard as she nodded to her friend to keep going.

"Kim asked me out on a date!" When she didn't receive a reaction, she pressed them, "Isn't it great!?"

Nino glanced over to where Alix was sitting alone, head resting on her arm as she pushed her food around her plate while Alya answered, "Yeah, that's great but what about your crush on Adrien?"

"I am so over Adrien, his fanbase is even more jealous than Marinette and I want a safe relationship." Lila put on her best fake smile, "Kim is so kind and nice."

"Yes, and his brain is emptier than my bank account," Nino retorted, earning another elbowing from Alya. "What? Its true!"

"We gotta show some kind of support for her. She is moving on from her crush, which is hard to do. Just look at Marinette. She is at the point of insanity, rejecting a nice guy known as Luka for a celebrity crush."

Lila smirked inwardly, she was so close to cutting Marinette off from her friends.

Marinette

Her mood dropped as she heard her best friend's words. How could she say that behind her back? Alya clearly but dialed her and didn't know her phone was on speaker. It still hurt a lot. Adrien looked at her in concern, unable to hear the conversation. Marinette hung up the phone before she heard anything else that could damage her friendship. "So apparently Kim asked out Lila," she spat.

Adrien was shocked, "How did that even happen?"

"She probably dared him to do it. He does literally any dare you can think of. Lila probably dared him to ask her out, then pranced like it was all him to Alya," she scowled. Then she brighten, "At least she is over her 'crush' on you. Now you are probably free of being hunted by Alya for a set up attempt."

He tilted his head at her, "Is that it?"

Marinette bit her lip, unsure whether to share the rest of what she heard with him. "Alya may have made a rude comment about how I 'mindlessly' rejected Luka. And said I'm at the point of insanity because I won't move on from the guy I like."

Adrien scowled, "What's wrong with her? Why would she say that to you?" He knew that he was the guy she has a crush on, but he didn't voice it. She was honestly the best, always there for him, his everyday Ladybug. The fact that Alya even had the nerve to say something like that about Marinette made him angry. Marinette's voice jerked him out of his thoughts.

"I think she but dialed me and didn't know I could hear what she was saying."

"Still, that's no reason to say something like that. Especially behind your back." It warmed her heart to see Adrien angry on her behalf, knowing that in and out of costume, he had her back.

"It's not worth getting angry over, she is being tricked and manipulated by Lila, you know what it's like." Adrien grunted as he remembered a time when Lila had him convinced she was a descendant of a fox miraculous wielding hero. He was completely captivated till Ladybug showed and poked holes into Lila's story, though she could have been a lot nicer about it. "Besides, if we let ourselves get angry over that, then both Lila and Hawkmoth win.

Adrien sighed, "You are right.'

Marinette smiled at him as they went back to eating their lunch. Once they finished, they went back upstairs and Adrien showed off a new game called Jedi Fallen Order. Setting a new game up for her, he handed the controller he brought to her. Marinette immediately went to the settings to max out the difficulty, shooting him a hurt look when she found it set for the lowest difficulty. He tried to explain, stating it was a challenging game when it comes to the combat, but she shrugged him off. After learning the controls and various game play mechanics, Marinette played through the story, loving the game play and story much to Adrien's delight. She proved to be much better at combat and puzzle solving than him, progressing faster than he did. It was thrilling to watch her get in the zone with something she liked, even though she complained about the lack of major character customization.

He enjoyed watching her play, throwing in the odd piece of advice as she progressed. They were so entranced by the game that they lost track of time. Adrien's bodyguard was calling to see where he was as Sabine poked her head in the room to let them know that dinner was ready and Adrien was welcome to stay. Knowing Natilee and his father were not home to have him locked up, he accepted, after receiving the okay from Marinette, who couldn't stop smiling.

Lila and Kim

It was a simple movie date, but it was still fun even if she was pretending. Lila swooned about it to Kim, who asked if they could go out again. She happily agreed, kissing him on the cheek before parting ways. What she didn't see watching her and Kim though was the one thing that could bring down her whole charade. A jealous Alix Kubdel.


	6. Chapter 6: Tuesday

"**Don't be amused, it's just the news! Agent Roger has reported investigations into local Judge Roncomp. Current suspicions is that the judge has received payments from the mayor to deny law enforcement forces the warrant to arrest Chloe. Chloe herself has been spotted briefly on a balcony, before heading back inside."**

Marinette

She woke to her alarm regretfully, hating the fact that despite no school she still had to wake up. Naturally after Adrien left for dinner, she got into a grind working on her website. She had finished late at two in the morning, finally going to sleep. Then she remembered today was another day she would be hanging with Adrien while all their friends were too busy to interfere. Pulling out her phone, she eagerly texted Adrien.

**Marinette:** Good morning sunshine!

**Adrien:** Good morning!

**Marinette: **I was thinking of showing you one of my favourite hide-away places. Unless you want to hang out at the bakery again?

**Adrien: **That sounds awesome! I'm guessing not a lot of people know about it?

**Marinette: **You will be there first, I attached a link to the address. Meet nine thirty?

**Adrien: **Works for me, see you there!

Marinette smiled, excited to spend some time with Adrien, even if they had to stay low in order to avoid his over eager fanbase. Turning to her closet, she went through various clothes, before finding one outfit that will make him blush. No, she would save that one for the first date. Moving on, she found an outfit and set it aside. Heading down she made herself breakfast, cooking some extra for Adrien. She frowned at the thought of him not receiving enough food. Luckily for him, she would be willing to feed him as much as she can.

Alya

Nino glanced behind him at his girlfriend. He wasn't sure what to think of her attitude lately, sure Marinette was a bit over the top but that's Marinette. Harshly making her change targets was a bit too much. Marinette has been ignoring them since, clearly upset.

She was calmly sorting through comments on the Ladyblog when Lila approached, a bit of a spring in her step. "Someone must have had a good date. How did it go?"

Lila beamed, "It was wonderful! We went and saw a movies!" Alix walked by, a little too slow for subtle. "Hey Alix! What's up?" Alix glanced at them like a deer caught in headlights before rushing off. "What's up with her?"

Alya shrugged, "She was definitely not acting as she usually does. Probably just an off day." She went back to moderating comments while Lila rambled on about her 'wonderful' date, neither noticing Alix glaring at them from the back row.

Adrien and Marinette

He nearly dropped to the sidewalk when she came into view. Continuing the Chat Noir theme, she wore a light green t-shirt with a black kitten staring at a ladybug sitting on it's nose, wearing black jeans to complete it. Her hair was done in a single braid hanging over her right shoulder, a green hair tie on the end. As she smiled at him, he felt himself get tongue tied. He was not going to survive today.

"Hi Adrien!"

"H-hi Mari! What's in the box?"

"Your breakfast," he opened his mouth to object, but she held a finger up, continuing, "You clearly aren't getting fed enough, so I brought you food and you will eat it."

Adrien accepted the box, knowing she won't take no for an answer. "So where is this secret hide-a-away?"

"It's nearby, but first," her expression became serious instantly, "you have to swear not to tell anyone about this place. Not Nino, not Alya, not Kagami, no one. Understand?"

Adrien swallowed hard. He rarely seen this side of Marinette, the scary side. "I swear it will remain secret."

She instantly smiled at him, "Good, let's go, it's just this way." She grabbed his hand and led him down the way she came.

Alix

Ms. Bustier had split them into study groups and assigned them areas to study in peace. Alix was grouped with Nathniel, Rose and Juleka, placed at a table in the library. To her frustration, Kim was placed in the same group as Lila, Alya and Nino. Despite her best efforts to contain her anger, it must have been visible some how. "Alix, is something wrong?" Rose looked at her in concern.

"Yeah, everything is fine," Alix muttered, "As long Lila is happy there is no wrong. Sunshine and rainbows."

"Okay, something is wrong." Nathniel spoke up, looking at Alix in concern, "And it has something to do with Lila."

"Ooh," Rose put her hands together in excitement, "She and Kim went on a date last night. I heard her tell Alya, she seemed so excited and happy." Alix dropped her head to the table, groaning loudly. "Oh, it's about Kim."

Ms. Bustier poked her head in the corner area that they were seated at, "Alix, try to use the time to study." With that she left immediately.

They turned their attention back to Alix. "What is so bad about Kim dating Lila?"

"Isn't she supposed to be in love with Adrien?" Juleka looked confused.

"Isn't that Marinette?" Nathniel asked.

"Not anymore, Alya demanded to stop supporting that. Lila has a crush on Adrien and Alya decided Marinette should let Lila have Adrien. Besides, Luka likes Marinette, so she will be fine," Rose reasoned.

"Actually Marinette turned down Luka. He took it really hard." Juleka spoke quietly, "I don't think they are going to be hanging out any time soon. And I think Alya is a bit out of line lately. I mean who is she to decide who dates who?"

Alix groaned, "None of this is helping me, Kim is literally just dating her because of a dare. Yet now both of them are acting like it's something meaningful."

"What's got you so worked up?"

"Nat, she clearly has a secret crush on Kim!" Rose giggled with glee.

"Shut up, no I don't," Alix muttered.

"Awesome," Juleka let out a small smile.

"I said I don't," Alix growled, "Now drop it."

"Look it must hard watching Kim with Lila, but she is honest and means well. If you want to talk about it, just let us know." Alix simply rested her head in her arms. Was Lila actually being honest? Didn't Marinette say something about Lila being a liar? Everyone wrote her off as being jealous, but what if she was onto something?

Marinette and Adrien

"Here we are!" Here was a bookstore with a little cafe attached, hidden in between a pair of office parks thirteen blocks from the bakery. It was a two story building, old, but seemed to be in good condition. "I found it a few years back and I come here for occasionally some quiet time and when I don't want people to find me."

Adrien laughed, "Except now I will be able to find you."

"Good thing you are the only one I will share this place with." She smiled brightly at him. Between bringing him breakfast and showing him a place she didn't even share with Alya, he was starting to see more proof that she liked him. She pulled him inside over to the bookshop side, guiding him to a small, cozy corner. "I like to just sit here in the back and either read a book or work on a sketch. It's like a secret hideout for when I want to be alone."

Going back into the library, they went around the teen section, each picking a book before settling back in the lounge, sharing a couch. Adrien found a fantasy novel about a group of kids who were mutated by a virus and given superpowers, while Marinette held the sixth book in a private investigator series. He was soon distracted by the novel, captivated by the story. When he took a brief moment to check the time, he noticed Marinette leaning against him, eyes half as she read her book.

Marinette's lack of sleep had finally caught up to her, drifting off unaware that she was more or less laying on her crush. Adrien blushed as she gave in to sleep, her head resting on his shoulder. He realized he could count her freckles when he was this close, as the sweet scent of the bakery hit him. Part of him wanted to wrap his arms around her, to keep his princess protected and safe. He started to move his arm around her without thinking, trying his best not to wake her. Fortunately, his luck was in today and he now had his princess safely secure in his arms, and continued to read his book over her shoulder. Plagg briefly flew out of the hiding spot he and Tikki had made into a cozy nest, looking at the guardian before giving Adrien the kwami version of a thumbs up.

Half an hour had passed before Marinette started to stir, causing Adrien to hyperventilate, now realizing the position he put himself in. As he attempted to remove his arms before she fully awoke, Marinette muttered something he was unable to understand, then snuggled closer up against him. Her head rested against his chest, breathing lightly. Adrien wrapped his arms around her again. Something about the way she snuggled on top of him felt right, her scent filling his nostrils and overwhelming him. He managed to stay like that for another hour before Marinette woke up. She was not at all shocked or surprised by the fact that they were snuggling.

"Sorry, late night last night. Wanna grab some lunch?"

His shoulders sagged in relief, though he wished she brought it up and talked about their feelings. No, he was not ready for that. "Yeah, let's do that." The pair headed off the cafe part of the bookstore, holding hands without a thought about it.

Kagami

She sighed in frustration. Her attempt to reach out to Luka had failed brutally, with him shrugging her off as he biked off to his home. She now sat in her school's cafeteria, debating a new way to confront him. Luka was one of the best people she knew and it pained her to see someone as creative as him hurt so much as to stop being creative. Interrogating Juleka revealed Luka rarely played his guitar, only practicing as to not lose the skill. Something had to be done and she will resolve it.

Lila the (insert rude name that a gentleman should never use)

She smiled as Kim boasted about the next date he had planned out for them. Alya and Nino listened, though Nino didn't seem on board with everything that has been happening. He had voiced his skepticism of her and Kim dating and had frowned on Alya's one eighty with Marinette. She would need to keep an eye on him.

What she still didn't realize was the real threat glaring at her from across the cafeteria. Alix casually broke her spoon, not at all okay with what she saw.

Adrien and his purrincess

As they ordered, he insisted on paying, giving the cashier his money before Marinette could voice her protest. Adrien loved the pout she gave him when he refused to let her pay for herself yet again, it was adorable. So when she complained that he wasn't letting her pay, he told her, "Because you look adorable when you pout like that. So I figured the more I pay for you, the more I get to see it." She blushed and turned into a stuttering mess to his delight.

Collecting their food, they grabbed a table along the back wall, still rebooting. Adrien smiled at her flustered expression, making her blush his new favourite thing to do and he was going to do it as much as he could. She took a bit of her sub sandwich, eyeing him shyly. His compliment caught her off guard. Confidence boost or no confidence boost, she was still Marinette and could only handle so many compliments from Adrien in a single day. "So have you talked to Nino?"

"Briefly, he wanted to see if I was free later, but it seemed like an Alya trap so I said I was busy."

"Sooner or later, we have to see them again. I'm still not happy with Alya and she hasn't exactly tried to apologize or make amends. Still, we should be somewhat honest with them about what we are doing."

Adrien winced, "But then in their blind trust for Lila, they will tell her. And I will not put it past her to leak it onto my fanbase's page. That will either end with us getting trampled or my father locking me in my room."

Marinette frowned at the thought, "That would be horrible. Though I would break into your house if you ever need the company." Adrien stared at her, blinking and then burst out laughing. Marinette glared at him, "What?"

"The thought of you breaking into my house, it's just a little ridiculous."

"Well been there, done that."

Adrien stopped laughing, "What?"

Marinette blinked, "What?"

"You broke into my house?"

"Maybe." Marinette's brain scrambled for a reasonable excuse, coming up with nothing.

"Why?"

"Embarrassing reasons."

"So nothing criminal?"

"Nope."

"Good," he smiled reassuringly at her, "though someday I am going to get the embarrassing reason out of you."

"Remember, curiosity killed the cat. And I prefer you to stay alive."

"Don't worry, purrincess. This cat has nine lives and will survive." He froze as she blushed. Did he just call her the name Chat calls her while he was Adrien? He glanced at her, looking for a sign of recognition. Her eyes were looking away, her cheeks bright red.

Marinette prayed he bought her act, she wasn't ready for an identity reveal. If she showed no recognition, maybe he won't go into the mess of a reveal and they could enjoy their afternoon. "If I'm a princess, does that make you my knight?"

"Does this mean I have to save you from being locked up in a tower?"

"I feel like the roles are backwards, since I am hiding you from your father who wants to lock you up." She smiled at him, guesting around them, "And now we are safely hidden away where you won't be recaptured."

"So how am I supposed to thank my hero?"

It took all her effort not to blurt out 'give me a kiss' right there and then. "Maybe let your knight pay for herself."

"How is that thanking you? I want to show my gratitude."

"Oh shut up and kiss already!" An annoyed lady sitting a few tables away clearly heard them, muttering loudly enough for them to hear her, "Flippen teenage lovebirds can't find a room." Both of them lit up like a stop light, stuttering out denials. Denials that neither of them actually meant of course. Too embarrassed to speak, both of them started stuffing their faces to avoid making it worse.

Adrien glanced at Marinette as they finished, "Back to the shelves?" he asked hopefully, remembering how it felt to hold her. She nodded, not trusting herself to speak. They settled down with their books again, though he noticed she instantly went to lean against him like before. He shifted to let her be a bit more comfortable, but didn't move his arm around her again. Adrien couldn't see the disappointment on her face as he didn't hold her again, though he himself wish he was.

Alix 

As Ms. Mendeleiev droned for their chemistry review, Alix glared at the back of Lila's head. Sure she never made a claim on Kim, but that didn't mean she didn't want him. Pulling out her phone, she googled up Lila's latest claim that she would be spending the summer with Prince Ali in Germany working with sick kids. This was false, as Prince Ali was to stay in his home country all summer long, assisting in fundraising for the poor. Before she could shout an accusation, Mylene passed her a note.

Confused, Alix unfolded the note, reading the message from the quiet girl. "**Alix, Lila is horrible, but if you accuse her in the open like Marinette, she will put on the tears and Alya will jump to her defence. Please wait until after school and talk to Ivan and I about it." **Alix hesitated, then nodded an acknowledgement. Whatever Mylene and Ivan knew, apparently they had been keeping it to themselves.

After the class ended, she found the perfect couple waiting outside for her. "What do you have?"

Mylene glanced at Ivan before speaking, "Remember Startrain?" Alix nodded, after all who couldn't forget going to space on a class trip? "Well when Adrien and Marinette fell asleep, everyone thought it was sweet, except Lila. Before Alya intercepted her, she had this look of disgust as she headed for them, but put on a smile when Alya caught her. And then later when we got free croissants, she didn't eat hers, but threw it out."

"After that we looked into her other claims, all of them were clearly false. We think she isn't actually traveling and just skipping school," Ivan added. He quieted as Lila walked past, holding hands with Kim, chatting about whatever airheads like her do.

"So what are you saying?"

"Cool it until we have a plan to expose her lies without anyone getting hurt if backfires."

"Fine, no promises." With that Alix skated off, not caring of a direction. She didn't know how long she was out, but as she rounded another corner, she spotted Adrien and Marinette, holding hands and laughing as they strode down the street. Alix snapped a photo and was about to send to the girls group chat when she hesitated. Alya usually would fangirl over Adrienette, but lately Alya had not been herself. She decided to keep it to herself, hiding the photo in a hidden folder.


	7. Chapter 7: Wednesday

"**Don't be amused, it's just the news! A tabloid reporter has somehow managed to get inside Chloe's apartments. The reporter has been arrested and is already set for trial tomorrow, while Chloe Bourgeois is yet to even be put on trial. The mayor is claiming that since Ladybug and Chat Noir are vigilantes, their testimonies do not count unless they unmask. We will keep you updated on the story."**

Marinette sighed, closing the news tab and checking over her website. Wayzz rested on her shoulder, keeping watch while Tikki was in the Miracle Box. "The mayor is clearly hoping for a checkmate. Chat Noir and you can't reveal your identities to the public, meaning if he convinces the law enforcement, Chloe gets away with her crimes!"

"Don't worry Wayzz. Even if he manages to keep her from getting arrested, everyone in Paris saw what she did. Justice will always find its mark." She smiled scrolling through her website, checking the various pages for errors as Wayzz watched with interest. "I am relieved to finally have this ready though. When Alya quit helping to spend time with Lila, I thought I would never finish it. Now I can launch it in time to give Jagged the link and he can attach it to his announcement tonight."

"I am worried about your friend though. If she remains caught up in lies, she is going to get hurt when the truth comes out."

"You have a point, Wayzz, but she has refused to listen to me at every turn. My only hope is that we can discredit Lila before more damage is done. Hopefully today, Jagged will give me a mini-interview after our design meeting." Her eyes widened, "The design meeting!"

A very frantic Marinette rushed about her work station as Wayzz zipped over to her, surprised by her speed. "Guardian, stop and calm yourself. Deep breaths and count to ten." Marinette nodded, calming herself before going back to gather the designs, neatly placing them in her binder.

"Marinette! Adrien is here!" Once again, the young guardian was in a panic, searching through her closet for something to wear. Wayzz groaned, zipping off to the miracle box to retrieve Tikki to deal with this mess. Teenagers were not his specialty.

Adrien

He spent the entire evening being teased by Plagg. He was also starting to wonder if Marinette actually remembered seeing Plagg and pretended to not remember it. That was when it hit him like a brick: Marinette was Multimouse, who used his miraculous meaning she met and worked with Plagg. Now that his four brain cells were on a roll, he realized no one besides the guardian has interacted with all the kwamis as Marinette had. Wait, does that mean she played him and then been playing him ever since?

Plagg laughed so hard when he heard Adrien voice this out loud that he dropped his cheese. Marinette was playing his boy alright, but she has played him plenty of times before. If Adrien has seen her sassy side as Marinette, he would have been over Ladybug and smitten with Marinette. Not to mention the freaking miracle box is in her bedroom.

Now Adrien was freaking out internally that Marinette knows that he knows of her crush on him as he entered the Dupain-Cheng Bakery. Sabine looked up from setting up the front display, smiling at the shy kind boy approaching. Marinette had been on cloud nine since he first visited last week and she seemed to never be coming down. "Good morning Adrien!"

"Good morning Mrs. Cheng. Is Marinette ready?" Adrien asks, hands fiddling nervously.

Her smile grew wider, "She is just stairs, you come up and wait in the kitchen." Adrien may not have a lot of brain cells but he knew something was up. She led him up the stairs, then called up the next set of stairs, "Marinette, Adrien is here!" Next thing Adrien knew, there was a full plate of food shoved in his face. He opened his mouth to politely decline when Sabine cut him off. "You can either accept it now or explain to Marinette why you didn't accept food that she asked her mother to have ready for you." With that, Adrien immediately thanked her and started to eat the food. As Sabine started to head back down into the bakery, she looked back one last time, smiling at how quickly he changed his mind to avoid Marinette's wrath.

Marinette finally settled on a design she liked, based on her Multimouse costume. Collecting her binder, she double-checked for all the designs before heading down to the kitchen. To her delight, Adrien was eating the breakfast she asked her mom to have ready for him. As she sat down next to him and opened up her binder, she saw his jaw drop as he noticed her outfit. She was definitely baiting him with the Multimouse themed outfit. Marinette was clever that way. She wore a professional style button-up shirt with a matching skirt. The color scheme was dominated by light-dark greys, with pink lining along both. Her hair was up in two buns just like her costume, tied with grey and pink ties.

He realized she caught him staring and was smirking at him, "Better close that mouth before the food falls out." He did so, cheeks burning red as he looked down at his plate. She decided to spare him further teasing, pulling out her designs.

Adrien swallowed his food, "I managed to convince Thomas Astruc to give us an interview. He said we can stop by anytime after lunch."

"That's perfect. We can go after my meeting with Jagged Stone," she beamed, picking a few sheets to pull out. "So here are the drawings for his tour outfits, some for a specific concert, others that are made for a certain song." She put a few in front of him, careful to keep them far enough away to avoid getting food spilled on them. She then pulled out a few more designs, "These are for merch, both tours themed and album themed."

Adrien looked at the designs, always surprised when it came to Marinette's creativity. "These are great Mari, I want to buy one!" Marinette blushed, muttering that she could make him one instead as she smiled at the table. Adrien frowned, "Or you can let me buy one and then I have the pleasure of supporting your career." Marinette tried to stutter out an excuse, but Adrien stopped her, "No offense, but you are too nice for your own good. That's why we organized that class picnic for you. But I think it's time for you to stop with the free stuff for everyone. The matching outfits Alya and Nino ask you for, then banners and the baked goods for events. Even after we discredit Lila, you should tone it down. Ask for something in return. Before the class picnic, what was the last thing our class has ever done anything for you without asking or you asked them for a favor? And your birthday party does not count."

Marinette hesitated. She couldn't think of a time that had happened, but she didn't want to say that to Adrien. She always wanted to make her friends happy and be liked. "But their my friends, they always have my back?"

Adrien frowned, this was one bubble he didn't want to burst. "Mari, remember when Lila convinced everyone to change seats and all of them got angry when you asked to be back in your seat? Or when Lila accused you of cheating, stealing, and pushing her down the stairs? I was the only one who believed you that are innocent and worked to prove it." Marinette nodded, remembering both scenarios. Lila had a very serious hold over everyone else, she was a born actress. "Even after everything you have done for them, whether you were asked or not, they turned on you and ignored me." He gave her that soft compassionate look that made her heart flutter. "So maybe the next time they ask you to make or do something, make it a commission. Don't let them use you after what they all did. So when I want a Jagged Stone shirt, I will buy one to support my friend."

Marinette looked down, cheeks flushed. She wondered how he would feel about the chest full of presents for his birthdays, Christmas, and even just to be kind. That would probably shock him. "But what if I want to?"

He smiled at her, making her melt despite her newfound confidence. "Marinette, let's be real, even if you want to make me a shirt, it will cost you a lot more than me. So if you do so, I will just have to guess the price on my own. And you should know us rich people like to guess way too high." His smile changed to a smirk as she glared at him, a pout forming. He remembered how much she was bothered when he paid for her, pouting just like she is now.

Defeated, Marinette hung her head. "Fine, but I am still gonna keep making presents for your birthday. Everyone else can shove it for now." She panicked, realizing she hinted that she had made him a present for his birthday. Praying that he didn't pick up on her hint, she glanced at him.

Adrien was simply smiling at her. "Deal."

Alix

As she worked on her essay, the short girl glanced up when Ms. Bustier had her back turned to glared at the back of Lila's head. The previous days had rubbed her the wrong way, but today was the worst. Lila had managed to convince Ms. Bustier that she is mentally and physically unable to write an essay. Alix never saw a note or heard of Lila's mom meeting with the teachers or Ms. Bustier. It was clearly all lies, but everyone ate it all up no questions asked, just swooning over her in concern. Did Marinette feel like this every day?

Marinette and Adrien

They arrived at Bob Roth Records, Penny meeting them at the front and guided them to Jagged Stone's recording studio. Jagged sat at his desk, guitar in his lap while Fang slept next to him. His head jerked up as they entered, a huge smile lights up his face, "Marinette, my favorite Rockin roller! How's my favorite niece doing?"

Marinette lit up, "Busy, but I am excited to show you the designs I made for your tour." Adrien noticed both Jagged and Penny edged closer, both eager to see what Marinette had come up with. "Let's start with your tour outfits. I noted your different locations and times, so I made this set to keep you comfortable despite different climates. These outfits were inspired by certain songs, but can go with all of them, fitting your rocking roll style."

Penny admired the drawings while Jagged jumped out of his chair, sending it crashing into the wall. "Rock and Roll! These designs are rocking, I can already see myself rocking the stage in these. I'll take them all!"

Marinette's eyes were wide, she expected some of her designs to be taken, but not all of them. Penny smiled at her, "Jagged is pretty excited to have you doing the design work. Bob Roth is trying to get some Italian designer in to do the job, so Jagged figured he kills two birds with one stone. Get designs that he loves and flip off Bob Roth."

Adrien grinned as Marinette blushed a the hidden complement. "I also have some designs for merch as well, shirts, hats, and hoodies." Jagged poured his eyes over everything, excited as a kid in a candy store. Working with Penny, they made arrangements for production and payment. Marinette had a deal with a local fabricator through Jagged, she will simply just need to agree on a commission for her designs.

Once that was all settled, Jagged looked over at Marinette and Adrien, "I don't want to forget, I got backstage passes for the concerts in France for you, one for you and one for your boyfriend?" Adrien felt his face heat up, not sure how to reply,

Marinette smiled, a blush of her own growing. "Thanks, Jagged! We are just friends though. Adrien is here taking a week off. His dad doesn't know, so he is hiding with me all week."

Jagged smirked, remembering the Adrien wall inside Marinette's room all too well. "Anyone rebelling against authority has my respect. Just don't get caught, the stick up your father's rear seems to go further in than out."

Penny elbowed him sharply as Marinette asked him, "I have the web address for my website. I was wondering if you could link it in on your new album release announcement? Also, could you do a little interview for us?"

Jagged smiled, "Of course, anything for my favorite niece!"

"Short of a felony hopefully," Penny muttered, still smiling at Jagged's eagerness.

That person we all love to hate, and some traitors

Lila grinned at Alya, "I almost forgot to tell you guys. Jagged Stone loved the album design so much that he asked me to do his entire tour outfit designs. This is going to boost my fashion career so much!"

Alya grinned, "Girl, I am so excited for you. New boyfriend, new career opportunities! We should do an interview right after school today!"

Lila grinned, false smiling through the lunch, accepting praise all her victims. Alix listened in on them, then proceeded to vomit.

Marinette and Adrien

They exited Thomas Astruc's office, getting the interview they needed. "We got some pretty solid evidence against Lila built up. Now, all we have to do is show it to the principal and teachers. They call her mom and she will spill the beans that Lila has never really left Paris. I mean when she called us on Heroes Day, Volpina showed up so she had to have been in Paris that day."

Adrien nodded, remembering that day grimly. It was the second-worst day for him and Ladybug by far, losing all their part-time holders and Master Fu. "How do you think the class will react?"

"A lot of them had really dedicated themselves to her, but Alya has the most to lose. She posted videos of Lila talking about how she and Ladybug are best friends, citing Lila as a reliable source. If we get her exposed as publicly as we intend to, Alya's reputation is going down the drain. She might even blame us for it."

"We don't need her. She turned her back on you, her best friend who has always been there for her, for someone who she just met and never fact-checked. I say this because I care about you Marinette, but I think Alya is just interested in getting views and only cares for herself. Even Nino hasn't been listening to me."

Marinette looked at her feet, "I never admitted this to anyone, but before this school year I never had any friends. Chloe would bully me and everyone else turned a blind eye. Then I met Alya and she made me feel so much better, helping me stand up for myself. Then everyone seemed to want to be my friend. I worked so hard to please them, becoming the class rep, baking treats for them, birthday presents, it was all to show them my worth. When Lila showed up, I felt like I would lose all of that, so I worked double to keep their friendships."

"One, I didn't get a present from you and I think you are the most awesome person I know short of superheroes. Two, if they are only your friend for the perks, then they don't deserve your friendship." Marinette remained silent, thinking about the scarf that he thought was from his father. How happy he was. She could never take that from him. Adrien's next suggestion jerked her out of her thoughts, "Maybe you should transfer, even if the class learns the truth. There is this Art school my father keeps trying to get me to transfer to, where they have fashion, modeling and acting classes. I could leverage a deal with him to get you a scholarship? You would love it there and it's a fresh start."

Marinette bit her lip, "That would be nice, but are you sure? I mean you went to school to escape your father's controlling nature and this is something he wants, not you."

"As long as you are going there with me, it will be worth it. So is that a yes?" Marinette could only nod, speechless. "Awesome! When father gets back, I'll talk to him about it."

Alix and Max

"Is this legal?"

Alix glared at Max as he opened his computer. "You have a robot that can hack government systems and you are worried about this?"

"It just seems like an invasion of privacy. That's all." Max typed away at the keyboard, command codes Alix didn't understand running across the screen. "Okay when Lila called us on Heroes day, she was…" Max trailed off, confused by the results. "Her mom's apartment in Paris? That makes no sense."

Alix shook her head, "No, it makes perfect sense. Marinette was right all along and we didn't listen."

Adrien

He sat in front of his computer, backing up the interview videos they had obtained. Something Marinette had said earlier stuck with him. "Fine, but I am still gonna keep making presents for your birthday." As if she had done so before. Adrien even commented that he never got a birthday present from her and she looked away.

As his two brain cells overworked themselves, Adrien went to his dresser and pulled his favorite blue scarf out of the top drawer. Carefully examining it, every stitching and pattern, he found what he was looking for. Embroidered in a little pattern on the end was 'Love Marinette'.


	8. Chapter 8: Thursday

"**Last night, a new fashion designer made their debut via an online website. Many celebrities, specifically Jagged Stone who credited them with his latest album design, endorsed their work, sharing links to the site on their social media. Many fashion designers and critics, including Gabriel Agreste, have complimented the designs and are seeking to recruit this new designer. However, we only know the new designer by their logo: MDC Fashion. This event has almost completely outshined Chloe Bourgeois who has yet to face justice for her crimes."**

Marinette

She couldn't believe how fast her website had blown up overnight. Orders came in faster than she originally thought they would, the Ladybug and Chat Noir merch selling the most. Despite it being six in the morning, she was dancing around wildly with excitement, Tikki zipping around the room with her. "Marinette, this is so exciting! All your hard work is paying off! Literally!" the kwami giggled.

The young guardian beamed at her, "I know! I gotta tell someone!" Marinette pulled out her phone, Alya's contact opened in seconds. She hesitated, she hadn't spoken to Alya in a week and no doubt the redhead was mad at her for being ignored. Instead, she opens Adrien's and began typing out a message. Due to her excitement, he had to slow down and correct herself five times before finally sending the message. Marinette looked back at Tikki, "I still can't believe this! I know Ladybugs are lucky, but this just… wow!"

Tikki flew up to the excited girl, "I can believe it, Marinette. You have always been hard working and your designs are incredible." Marinette smiled, hugging the kwami.

Plagg

He was sleeping in his nest of cheese when Adrien's phone went off, the noise startling him awake. His green eyes glared at the abomination that awoken him from his dream of cheese land. "Who the heck texts a person at this ungodly hour," he muttered darkly as he inspected the message. Pigtails, his guardian. Okay, she gets a pass he decided. "Kid wake up!" he shouted, slapping his holder with his paw.

Adrien stirred, muttering, "Go away Plagg." He rolled over, pulling a pillow over his ear.

Plagg groaned, "It's your girlfriend. She is texting you right now. Wake up and deal with it!"

With that Adrien bolted up, snatching up his phone and knocking Plagg back off the bed. He was still dealing with the fact that Marinette made his favorite scarf and that she let him believe it was from his father. It made him feel warm inside that she wanted him to be happy, even if that meant she had to let someone else take credit for something she worked so hard on. He scanned the message and smiled.

Marinette: The site has been blowing up like crazy, so many orders have been coming in all night long. This is so exciting! Thank you so much for helping me set it up in time! :) 3

Adrien blushed when he saw the heart emoji on the end. Plagg noticed snickered, enjoying the goofy look of his holder's face. "You didn't deny that she's your girlfriend. Are you finally admitting that I am right?" Adrien glared at him, opening his mouth to deny the kwami's claims, then closing it when he realized Plagg might just have a point for once. As he looked back at his phone to type out a reply, Plagg zipped around his head in a victory dance before swan diving into his cheese stash. He burst back out, cheese in paws. "So what did your princess want?"

"Her website for her fashion designs launched last night and there are already lots of orders," Adrien commented, completely focused on his message. Plagg simply inhaled his cheese, sitting on Adrien's shoulder, watching him respond.

Marinette

She was still doing her victory dance when Adrien's reply sounds off, her phone vibrating on her desk. Rushing over, she read the message, then dropped her phone. Tikki zipped in to catch the phone, setting it back on her desk before zipping back to her holder. Marinette's face was filled with shock, hands shaking. "Marinette, what is wrong?" When the young guardian didn't respond, falling back on to her chaise, Tikki zipped back to the desk. Flipping the phone back over, she turned on the lock screen and read the message for herself.

Adrien: That's awesome Mari! It makes sense that people like your designs so much. They are the best, especially the Marinette original you gave me for my birthday! :)

Tikki gasped, "Adrien knows that the scarf wasn't actually from his father." Marinette nodded, still freaked out from the sudden revelation. Tikki tilted her head, confused, "Isn't that a good thing?"

Marinette shrugged, "Maybe? I don't know. What if he is mad it's not really from his father?" Marinette pulled her knees close to her, hiding her face as she groaned. "What if he doesn't want to hang out anymore?"

Tikki kissed her holder's forehead, trying to calm her down. "Who says he isn't happy that you made the scarf for him?" she reasoned as she patted Marinette's head.

Marinette looked at the kwami, "You are right, Tikki. How did you get to be so wise?"

"Oh you know, existing for a couple of million years. You aren't the first drama queen I been paired up with." Marinette burst out laughing her insecurities long forgotten.

Alya

Alya shook her head, looking at her phone while sitting with Lila and Nino on a bench in the courtyard at school. "Girl, I can't believe that you are friends with the MDC designer. And that you helped with Jagged Stone's designs and those sweet Ladybug and Chat Noir themed outfits." She continued to scroll through the Ladybug section, admiring the different designs. "These are even cooler that Marinette's!"

Lila flashed her a smile, "Well this is a professional designer, not an amateur like Marinette. I made some of them as a personal request from Ladybug. She said she relies on me to get it right because we are such good friends."

Alya went full fangirl mode, "That is so awesome, you have to do the interview after school and tell me all the details." She shook her head, "If Marinette wasn't jealous of you before, she won't be able to deny it now."

Lila nodded, "But maybe I can introduce Marinette to MDC and she can become an intern!" Lila shook with hyperactive energy, as if eager about her idea. "And then Marinette and I will be friends finally!"

Nino grinned and nodded, while Alya narrowed her eyes, scowling, "I don't know, Marinette has been pretty rude to you. Does she even deserve something like this?"

Lila nodded her head in agreement, "I know Marinette has been jealous of me, but maybe this will help with starting a friendship with her. Once she sees how truly kind I am, she will see past her jealousy and apologize." She smirked to herself as Alya nodded in agreement, it was all too easy. Marinette would refuse, denying that Lila had no connection with MDC. Alya would tell her friend off instead of fact-checking the story, cutting Marinette off for good. The bell rang and the three of them walked off to their biology exam.

Alix walked out from behind a nearby pillar. Alya had some serious brain damage if the name MDC didn't ring a bell.

Marinette

Despite Tikki's earlier assurance that Adrien loved the scarf, Marinette still had her doubts. She was in the kitchen cooking breakfast while Tikki sat on the counter munching on some cookies. "Marinette, you have to stop worrying. Adrien said in his text that he loves your scarf, even if it wasn't from his father." The kwami inhaled her final cookie, then zipped over to sit on Marinette's shoulder, offering her physical support.

Marinette shrugged, focus on the crackling bacon. "I don't know Tikki, I guess I still worry about not being enough."

Tikki zipped in front of Marinette's face, hands on her hips as she stared her holder down, "Not enough? Marinette, you are amazing. If that boy isn't completely smitten by now, then he is as dumb as his puns."

Marinette laughed, "If you ever tell him I said this, I will deny it but I kinda like his puns." Tikki made a face while Marinette kept laughing, as her hesitation was forgotten again. Whatever happened, Marinette was certain it would be alright. She heard a knock on the door. 'Most likely Adrien,' she figured. As Tikki hid, she called out to him, "Come in!"

Adrien walked in with his messenger bag slung over his shoulder. Wrapped around his neck was an all too familiar blue scarf. He beamed as he saw her, "Hey Mari!"

Marinette blushed slightly, mentally scolding herself for letting Chat's secret identity melt her confidence. "Hey. So you know the truth about your scarf?" He nodded, giving her a kind understanding smile. Marinette sighed in relief, "Well at least Nino doesn't have to freak out every time you wear it now, not I am going to tell him right away." She tilted her head sideways as she leaned against the counter. "Are you upset that it wasn't from your father?" she asked, concern in her voice.

Adrien shrugged, unslinging his bag, hanging on a chair by the table and sitting down. "At first I was, but then I watched the security tapes from that day. My father was too busy and assigned Natalie to find me a gift, reminding her the day of. She panicked and took the note off your present. Honestly, I can never blame Natalie, she is one of the hardest working people I know." He looked her in the eyes, frowning. "Father never had been big on remembering my birthday lately, or anything really," he admitted.

Marinette walked over to him and gave him a hug, which was a bit awkward due to her standing and him sitting. "I am so sorry Adrien."

He pulled back from the head, looking her in the eye again as he confessed, "Don't be, you gave me the best present ever. For the first time since my mom disappeared, I was happy on my birthday. Thank you!" He got up and pulled her close, hugging her tightly. His nose was filled with her sweet scent, driving him nuts.

Marinette squeaked, completely caught off guard by him. Her face blazed red as she tried and failed to stutter out a reply. In the corner of her eye, she spotted Tikki turning off the stove to prevent the bacon from burning, while Plagg shook with silent laughter on the countertop.

A few moments later, Adrien broke the hug, his face also red with embarrassment as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. They looked away, then both tried to talk at the same time, then laughed as they both asked the other to go first. Adrien calmed himself down just before Marinette did, "You go first."

Marinette nodded, then pointed towards the stove, "I made you breakfast." As Adrien opened mouth to protest, she held up a finger and stared him down. "Sit down and eat. We both know what your model diet is like and it is not enough." Adrien attempted to stand his ground, but the mixed look of concern and conviction on Marinette's face told him he did not have a chance of winning. He meekly sat down and ate the food, Marinette grabbing her plate and sitting down next to him. She looked at him curiously, "What did you want to say earlier?"

Adrien blushed slightly, thinking of the ramble of how great she is that he was going to burst out. "Um, just that I think you are amazing and incredible." Marinette felt like she was going to burst.

Alya

As the class poured into the cafeteria for lunch, Alya lingered in the hallway, pulling out her phone. Pulling up Marinette's contact, she pressed call and waited. Marinette hadn't replied to any of her previous calls and text, so Alya was unsure if she would even pick up. Just as she was going to give up, she heard someone pick up on the other end. "Hello?" Marinette's voice came through.

"Girl, did you see that new fashion website last night?" Alya couldn't contain her excitement, eagerly waiting for Marinette's eager ramble about it.

In Marinette's room, Marinette was sitting on her chaise with her sketchbook carefully set aside, while Adrien sat at her desk scrolling through her designs. She gave him a questioning look while he just shrugged, having also heard Alya and confused by her question. "Yeah, Alya, of course, I saw it," she stated, suspicion creeping in her voice. Adrien pulled out his credit card, making Marinette lean forward to see what he was up to. Her eyes widened, "Adrien, no! Put that credit card away!"

Alya's jaw dropped, "Adrien is there with you?" Marinette didn't reply, arguing with Adrien about his ability to make financial decisions. "Girl, are you with Adrien right now?"

"Yes," her voice came back, a hint of nervousness mixed with frustration.

"Well, that's okay I guess. Lila is dating Kim now and seems to be over Adrien. Anyways, Lila wants to mend the bridges with you by introducing you to MDC and getting you an internship. She already is going to try and get me an interview with them as well." Alya jumped with excitement, drawing a few odd looks.

Marinette glanced at Adrien, who was momentarily distracted from his very full shopping cart. Both grinned at the other before bursting into laughter. This was probably the worst lie Lila could have used. While Adrien fell on the floor, Marinette managed to calm herself. "Okay, good one Alya."

Alya shook with fury on her end, "I am serious, Marinette, but clearly you are not. This could have helped your career but maybe you don't deserve Lila's help." With that, she hung up and stormed into the cafeteria. Nino, Kim, and Lila greeted her, asking why she was upset as Alix glared at them, a plan forming in her mind.

Adrien

Marinette was pissed when she saw the number of items in the shopping cart, but he managed to purchase before she could stop him. Now she sat pouting at him while he smirked victoriously. "So Alya has forgotten your initials." Marinette simply turned her attention away from him, focusing on her sketchbook. Not paying attention to him. That was not okay Adrien decided.

He started to snoop around her room, the gramophone once again capturing his attention. Adrien moved to try and play something but remembered Marinette had no records to play. He moved on towards a closed chest with a pile of sewing supplies piled on top of it. Adrien moved the supplies and was about to open it when a spray of water hit him. Recoiling back, he turned to face his attacker. Marinette glared at him, pointing the spray bottle at him like it was a gun. "Bad kitty." Adrien frowned for a second, his brain cells working overtime when she sprayed him again, forcing him to back farther away from the chest.

"Stop that," he hissed, glaring at the spray bottle in her hands.

Marinette smirked, "Make me." Adrien lunged for the bottle, only for Marinette to lift it out of his reach. As he hit the floor, she giggled, the most wonderful noise he ever heard. "You are just like a cat!" He glared at her, not amused. Marinette's eyes shot wide open, an idea forming in her mind. She opened a desk drawer and pulled out a laser pointer.

She smirked at him and shot the little red light right in front of him on the ground. His eyes instantly locked on it, watching it closely as she moved it back and forth. Finally, he gave into temptation and tried to swat the dot with his hand. Marinette turned off the laser just then, so when he raised his hand, Adrien was clueless as to where it went. Marinette's laughter pulled him out of the daze, realizing she was messing with him. "Not funny," he muttered as he silently vowed to kill Plagg.

Marinette giggled to herself, "Yes it is." He glared at her, clearly not amused. She smirked and switched it back on, pointing it at the wall across the room from them. Adrien forced himself to stay rooted, not wanting to give her the satisfaction. Marinette's phone went off, informing her of a new message. As she looked away distracted, Adrien lunged up. He tended to snatch the laser pointer, not tackle Marinette to the ground. Nor did he intend to end up play wrestling with her, both fighting for the laser pointer.

But he certainly didn't mind it, especially when they stopped rolling around. Marinette on top of him, her sweet scent overwhelming him, her lips barely an inch away from his. Her blue eyes stared into his, her face red as Ladybug's suit. He could ki…

"Excuse me, am I interrupting something?" The flustered teenagers looked at the semi-open hatch, Sabine smiling at them. Marinette tried to get up as Adrien tried to move away, causing both teenagers to get tangled up. Sabine laughed and left the plate of snacks she brought for them on the floor, eager to share with her husband what happened. As Sabine walked down the stairs, she changed her mind. Tom approved of Adrien and loved the boy, but Marinette was still his daughter who he can get a little overprotective of.

Adrien

As he sat at his computer, Adrien scrolled through the long list of items he bought from Marinette's website. After their little play fight, Marinette opened the message she received. It had been from Clara Nightingale, who sent a video message saying hi and answering the questions they asked. For the rest of the afternoon, they played Ultra Mech Strike III in awkward silence, though Adrien swore the few times he stole a glance at her that he caught her looking at him too.

His thoughts slipped back to that moment that they were so close. Adrien found himself longing to be in the warm bakery as his phone rang. Picking it up, he was startled by the voice of Alix, "Hey sunshine child. We gotta have a chat."


	9. Chapter 9:Blue-eyed Nightmare

**Author's note:** **Originally this chapter wasn't in the plan, but then I had a sudden flash of inspiration on how to work in something I always wanted to do. :)**

Lila the wise (jk)

She was in the classroom, tied down to a chair in the front. Marinette stood at the back of the classroom, smirking at her arms crossed. The rest of the class sat in their seats, glaring at her with hatred she had only ever seen directed at Marinette. Lila struggled against her restraints, unable to break free as she started panicking. She opened her mouth, trying to spin the tale against Marinette. That's when she realized that she no longer has a tongue. Lila screamed, not a sound coming from her.

Adrien

He was staring at his computer, his 'chat' with Alix going a lot longer than he expected. It was past twelve, long past the time he was expected to be in bed. Plagg zipped over, concerned for the half-awake boy overworking himself. "Hey kid, maybe you should finish it in the morning. I think Marinette would rather you rest well instead of overworking yourself over this," he gestured to the computer screen.

Adrien glanced at the recently framed photo on his desk, him and Marinette on a street somewhere, both of them smiling as they held hands. Alix had sent it to him when she texted him earlier to ask for his help. He used the printer in Natalie's office, then found a nice frame for it and set it on his desk. "You know how much this would mean for Marinette. After everything she has done, this can be a way to start paying her back."

"You mean besides blowing your credit card limit on her website?" Plagg tilted his head at him, "You really are head over heels for pigtails aren't you?"

"What? No, she's…" Adrien trailed off, as Plagg smirked at him.

"She's what? And if you say just a friend, I will bite you." The kwami glared at him, waiting for Adrien's reply. He never got it. A loud crash came as a purple clothed figure burst through the window. Adrien stared in shock as what appeared to be Hawkmoth approached him, twirling his cane as he laughed sinisterly. But as Hawkmoth strode into the light, halfway across the room to Adrien's desk, he was revealed to be unmasked. Adrien fell back against his desk as he stared into the cold face of Gabriel Agreste.

Alya

She was in her room, watching the views climb on the interview with Lila about MDC. Suddenly, a news article from her subscription popped up on her screen. The title kicked her in the gut: MDC filing lawsuit against Lila Rossi for spreading false information. Reading further into the article, she learned that Lila apparently did not know MDC as she claimed too and MDC was leading a large lawsuit, big names like Jagged Stone, Bob Roth, Thomas Astruc and multiple others. All of them have learned that the Ladyblog has been posting interviews with Lila and discredited both her and the Ladyblog. And by extension of discrediting the Ladyblog, they all also discredited Alya, forever making her an unreliable source.

The class group chat started blowing up just then, everyone freaking out and messaging so fast Alya was barely able to read them.

Rose: Can you believe Lila lied about everything!

Alix: Marinette called it

Nino: Alya, are you ok?

Kim: Seriously? She was the one who said we could believe Lila

Max: A good reporter checks her sources

Chloe: Wow, just wow

Rose: guys, what have we done to Marinette?

Alix: holy crap guys, check this article out!

Alix had a link attached to the message, which was another article. Alya opened it to find out that MDC has revealed themselves as Marinette Dupain-Cheng. She screamed, not sure what to think anymore.

Adrien and Plagg

Adrien forced himself to relax as he looked at his father in what he hoped was cosplay. Plagg had zipped into hiding the moment Gabriel crashed into the room, using the photo frame as cover. "Father? What's going on?"

'Gabriel' held out his arms, "Come to me, my son, let us embrace. We are family after all." He left his cane leaning against the couch, slowly approaching Adrien. "I wanted to share this secret with you. I need the help of a loyal son to get Ladybug and Chat Noir's miraculous. Then together, we can wield their power and bring back your mother!"

Adrien narrowed his eyes, "What makes you think that's even possible? I moved on and accepted that she left."

Gabriel screamed, his face twisting unnaturally in rage, "You will obey me, child! Accept your fate!" The cane flew back to his hand, the top flipping off releasing the purple butterfly.

Adrien hurled his mug at Gabriel, causing him to falter, "If you were really my father, you would use the door." With that he ran, slamming the door on his father's arm, earning a growl of rage. Plagg phased through the wall and flew after Adrien.

"This whole thing stinks of rotten cheese. Isn't your father out of the city?"

Adrien nodded as they entered the main dining hall, "Yeah, he isn't due back till next week. He wouldn't leave early either." His thoughts ran wild as he pulled out his phone, checking his father's location. Nowhere near Agreste Mansion. "Whoever that wasn't my father and I don't think they know my identity."

The wall behind them shattered, Gabmoth screaming, "Submit child! Become my akuma puppet and fight the heroes."

Adrien found himself backed against a window overlooking the garden with his mother's grave. Glancing back at Gabmoth, Adrien jumped, smashing through the glass. "Plagg claws out!" He landed with ease, glancing back at Gabmoth before pole vaulting away. He had to find Ladybug and sort out this mess.

"The Sandboy has returned! Your worst fears are made a reality!" Chat jerked his head, spotting the familiar akuma. And the not so familiar giant teddy bear striding down the streets, following the akuma as it spread the nightmare manifesting dust. Chat looked along the street, noting each building in the path. His eyes widened in horror when he spotted the Dupain-Cheng's bakery, doubling his pace as he bounded over rooftops, desperate to reach his princess in time. He prayed that Sandboy wouldn't hit her first.

Marinette

"The Sandboy just checked in! Now nightmares can begin!"

Her eyes opened at the noise from outside, sensing something was off. Sitting up and turning to face away from her wall, Marinette's eyes immediately found icy blue ones, encased in a white mask. "Hey, purrincess. I am so happy we are together again. Chat Blanc has been so lonely, but now everything will be okay."

As she screamed, her window shattered, Chat Noir crashing in, "Stay away from her mon…" He trailed off as he realized who was threatening Marinette. "How?"

Chat Blanc snared at him, "No! You don't deserve her! You don't love her as Chat Blanc does, I won't let you hurt her! Cataclysm!" A white shot of energy flashed towards Chat Noir, who narrowly dodged it. The energy hit the wall around the broken window, turning it to dust.

Chat Noir shouldered his akuma counterpart aside and scooped up the terrified Marinette. Shielding her, he extended his baton and sent them crashing through the trap door in the roof. Without a moment's hesitation, he vaulted them away as fast he could. Finally, when it seemed that they were far enough away, he stopped on a rooftop with some cover. He gently set Marinette down, "Princess, what, who was that?"

Marinette clung to him, tears streaming down her cheeks. "It's kind of a long story. Maybe you should take care of the akuma first. Then we can talk after."

Chat met her eyes, then nodded, "Okay, stay safe and out of sight. I will come back for you after Ladybug and I take down the akuma." Marinette nodded slowly, still shaking. He hugged her gently, then with a wave he was off to confront the akuma.

Tikki zipped out in front of her chosen, "I knew that Chat Blanc was terrifying for you, but that wasn't really Adrien. It is just a fake! And you took down the real one already on your own, this time Chat Noir is here to help you."

Marinette forced herself to breathe. Slowly she calmed herself down, "Your right Tikki. Spots on!"

Chat Noir

He barely made it halfway back to the akuma when he ran into Chat Blanc. "Where is she?" his white doppelganger hissed, firing a blast of his white cataclysm at his perch. "Where is my Marinette!"

Chat Noir growled, leaping away from the disintegrating building towards Chat Blanc. "Sorry, but I am not letting you anywhere near her!" he swung his baton down, clashing with Chat Blanc's baton. The two began whirling around each other, batons changing lengths as each fought to gain the upper hand. Chat Noir found himself switching from sword to quarterstaff to twin sticks back to the sword again, blocking and counting the crazed Chat Blanc's blows.

Seeing an opening, Chat Blanc kicked him in the stomach, knocking Chat Noir onto the ground a few meters back. "Cataclysm!" Chat Blanc dove forwards with his right hand outstretched. "No one will keep her from me!"

Chat Noir rolled to the side, barely dodging the destructive energy. The roof crumbled to dust, dropping the fighting Chats into the warehouse below. Chat Noir pushed himself back up, looking around with his night vision for his evil self. Chat Blanc's voice came from somewhere in the darkness, "You don't know how to love as I do! You don't know her true worth!" Chat Noir rolled his eyes, he knew for a fact that Marinette's worth is impossible to calculate. She was priceless to him. A flash of red caught his eye, Ladybug swinging overhead. "M'Lady! I missed you so much wait up!" Chat Blanc's strained voice rang out, sending chills down Chat Noir's spine. He burst out of his hiding place, using his baton to launch himself after Chat Blanc.

Ladybug turned her head at the chilling voice that had haunted her dreams for so long. Chat Blanc was running across the roof two buildings behind her. For a moment she turned to flee but made up her mind. This wasn't the real Chat Blanc and she wasn't alone, a fact that was confirmed when Chat Noir overtook Chat Blanc. The two Chats were in a brawl almost instantly, rolling in a heap as Chat Blanc screaming in rage. Chat Blanc managed to get the upper hand, aiming his cataclysm at Chat Noir when she swung feet first into him. She kicked him back, sending him crashing into the wall behind him, his cataclysm shooting off wildly.

Chat Blanc glared at Ladybug, "Why do you keep breaking my heart Marinette?" Chat Noir's eyes widened, at first shocked but then realized it made purrfect sense. As he got up still shocked by the sudden revelation, Ladybug got in front of him spinning her yoyo in a shield. "Do you even love your prince anymore?"

Ladybug stared down Chat Blanc, her voice steel without a hint of fear, "You never existed and as long as I am here, you will never happen. I beat you alone, I won't lose now with my partner at my side." Chat Noir rushed to her side, squaring off against the monster with her. "Give up and I will set you free from your pain."

Chat Blanc stared at her, rage in his icy eyes. He opened his mouth to speak when he was cut off by the sound of a child. "The Sandboy just checked in, no nightmares can begin!" The heroic duo turned, spotting Sandboy and his giant teddy bear. Ladybug spotted the smaller teddy bear on the pillow with Sandboy.

Behind them, Chat Blanc called for his cataclysm and blasted away at them. He missed, hitting the teddy bear. Sandboy cried as the stuffed animal turned to dust, the amok floating off as the giant teddy bear disappeared. Ladybug and Chat Noir jumped back as the akuma flew past them at Chat Blanc, screaming "How dare you!" Chat Blanc jumped off to dodge, calling another cataclysm.

Ladybug quickly caught the amok before it escaped, purifying and releasing it. She glanced at Chat Noir, who was still surprised at her identity reveal. "We can talk after, kitty. First, we have to stop the akuma and end this nightmare. He nodded, understanding that the city came first. "Okay, let's go!"

Up ahead, Sandboy dodged cataclysm blasts, trying to get close enough to hit Chat Blanc with his sand. The white-clad akuma was difficult to hit, dodging in the blink of an eye and sending a cataclysm back at him. The two were so focused on fighting each other that neither noticed the heroes until Ladybug's yoyo wrapped around Sandboy and yanked him off his pillow. Chat Noir lunge forward past her, right arm outstretched. "Cataclysm!" He hit the pillow, releasing the akuma. Ladybug lowered the boy to the ground carefully, then whirled her yoyo around to catch the akuma.

Chat Blanc screamed, attempting to jump at Ladybug as she captured the akuma, only to be cut off by Chat Noir. "Hurry M'Lady!" Ladybug quickly released the akuma and tossed her yoyo in the air. The miraculous cure buzzed about the city, taking away Chat Blanc, other nightmares and fixing the damages around the city.

Alya

She was sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall as she watched more messages come in, each telling her that she was a fool and a failure. Suddenly the familiar miraculous cure ran through her room, the messages and news articles gone. Alya sighed in relief, it was all because of an akuma.

Then she groaned, she missed an akuma attack and another chance for an interview with Ladybug and Chat Noir.

Lila

One moment she was tied down, tongueless as the class yelled at her with rage. The next, she was back in her bed at home. She breathed slowly, forcing herself to calm down. It was all just an illusion. The class was under her control, Marinette was an outcast. She pulled up her sheets to go back to sleep, unaware that this nightmare could become very real.

The end of the love square

After Chat recharged and they dropped the boy off with the police (rip the child who is one of my favorite akumas but was never named), they headed back to the bakery. Spotting Marinette's parents on her balcony, they stopped for a moment to allow Marinette to drop her transformation. Chat carried her the rest of the way, gently setting her down on the balcony to her grateful parents. Tom and Sabine wrapped her up in a hug, relieved to have their child safe. To Chat's surprise, he was also squeezed into a hug with a promise of free treats from the bakery. After the parents finally finished thanking him, they took Marinette downstairs leaving Chat alone on the roof by himself.

Marinette was Ladybug? That made sense to him. But where did Chat Blanc come from? He never recalled being an akuma, but his evil version seemed to Marinette's fear. And Chat Blanc knew Marinette's identity, did that mean she was scared he might end up being hurt if he learned her identity. Before his mind could goes any wilder, Marinette opened the trapdoor inviting him back inside.

He climbed down into her room, meeting her eyes nervously. For a moment, neither of them spoke. Then Marinette offered him a shy smile, "I guess the cat is out of the bag, Adrien." At first, he laughed, then his eyes widened as he slowly realized she called him by his civilian identity. Marinette giggled at his shocked expression, "Sorry kitty, Plagg let it slip last week. I was planning on telling you tomorrow, but then that akuma happened." She bit her lip, looking at her hands.

"Claws in," he called softly, glaring at Plagg who shrugged back at him. Adrien then turned his attention back to Marinette. His limited amount of brain cells had a revelation, "So that's why you were dressed up in all that Chat Noir designs."

Marinette smiled at him, "I generally prefer Chat Noir themed clothes." As he wiggled his eyebrows at her, she smirked and added, "Because then I don't have to risk being recognized as Ladybug."

She giggled as he groaned, his hand over his heart in mock pain, "You wound me Purrincess."

"Oh, come on. You probably have something Ladybug themed. What do you have?" she insisted.

Adrien looked away, rubbing the back of his neck while Plagg cackled. "He has just about every piece of Ladybug merch in existence! Seriously, he has a second walk-in closet just for it all." Marinette giggled as Adrien's cheeks heated up.

"I have a very extensive photo collection of a certain model so I guess we are even." She debated for a moment, then admitted, "I also designed an extensive array of clothing with his alter ego in mind, so I tend to think of him a lot." Adrien blushed as he looked back at her, his green eyes found her blue ones again, a question in them that she knew, the same one she had. "So now what?"

He didn't hesitate, "I want to take you on a date." Seeing her face light up at him, Adrien kept going, "I mean we can go somewhere nice together." He seemed to get nervous, "I mean if you want too?"

Marinette jumped at him, hugging him tightly, "Of course you silly cat, I love you. Both sides of you." Her eyes widened, a blush creeping over her face as she realized what she said. Adrien's face lit up

"I love you too princess." She barely had time to process what he said as he pressed his lips against hers, everything else fading out of existence as he held her tight.

"I need cheese!" Adrien groaned, glaring the offending kwami while Marinette shook with laughter.


	10. Chapter 10: Friday

"**Don't be bemused, it's just the news! After all the buzz over the fashion designer MDC, who is rumored to be joining Jagged Stone for an interview tomorrow, Chloe Bourgeois is back in the spotlight. Agent Roger has gained a warrant, at last, to arrest Chloe on charges of aiding a known terrorist in attacking the city of Paris. Police have raided the Mayor's hotel and led Ms. Bourgeois out in handcuffs. Her trial is due to begin in a week. We will be streaming the trial live, so stay tuned."**

Adrien

Despite being up for the better part of the night, Adrien felt amazing. He finally had his lady, his princess. Even after the dark, shocking story of Chat Blanc and how that event was erased from history, he felt his spirits up. They had spent the entire night talking, Marinette curled up against him as he held her in his arms. He remembered squeezing her tight as tears started coming out when she told him how awful it was, the destruction all around as she was chased. He shivered at the memory, wishing he was still holding her like last night. After the story of Chat Blanc came out, lots of others did. Marinette could never talk to someone about being Ladybug and the guardian before. Or the guilt that what happened to Master Fu was her fault.

Peering into the top drawer where he kept his favorites, Adrien found the beanie Marinette had made him for his fifth name's day. The fact that Marinette made such wonderful gifts for him but still sacrificed for her feelings for his happiness made his heart swell. He checked his phone and saw no messages yet. That was odd, she always sent him good morning messages by now. Probably just exhausted from last night, or rather this morning. He typed up a quick message, then collected the flash drive from his computer.

He had some things to take care of before stopping by Marinette's later.

Alya

She was still shaken up from her nightmares and from what she could tell Nino and Lila had them too. As they entered the school, they spotted Alix out front talking to Adrien. Nino rushed over, "Bro! I haven't seen you all week." Adrien smiled apologetically, as Alix slipped away unnoticed into the school.

"Sorry, I have been hiding out most of the week," Adrien tried to state plainly, but couldn't help the smile on his face.

"With Marinette?" Nino asked, a smirk on his face.

Adrien blushed as he rubbed the back of his neck, "Well, yeah. We have been hanging out all week and it's been a blast."

"Did you make a move yet?"

Adrien winced, unsure what to say. They never really stated they were dating, so it was probably best to keep the confession and late-night cuddlings to himself. "I am waiting for the right time."

Nino rolled his eyes, then heard Alya call for him, "Sorry dude, gotta go." Adrien waved as he slipped away.

As Nino approached, Lila glanced over at Alix rushing over to Max, handing him a flash drive. The pair walked into the school, quickly followed by Mylene and Ivan. The group was definitely up to something. "What did Adrien want?"

Nino shrugged, "Dunno, he only talked to Alix before me and he didn't say anything other than that he and Marinette were hanging out."

Lila scowled lightly, keeping it hidden from the others while Alya waved off Nino's comment, showing off photos captured from the previous night. Photos of a white Chat Noir fighting the real Chat Noir, joined by Ladybug and Sandboy. Many people had been posting their theories on the Ladyblog, the most common being that this 'Chat Blanc' was Ladybug's fear. "They are probably right too, but the last time Sandboy was in town, Ladybug lost her powers. I wonder what happened to change her fear."

Nino shrugged while Lila's eyes lit up, seizing the opportunity given to her. "Actually, I know the reason why he is Ladybug's worst fear. But I need you to promise not to post it on the blog." Alya nodded, with absolutely no intention of not posting it on the Lady blog. "Well, there was a time when Ladybug rejected Chat Noir and he got akumatized in secret. After she purified him, she pretended to like him to keep him happy. Ever since she has been dating him to keep him getting akumatized."

All Alya heard was the biggest scoop ever! She was already typing away at her phone as Lila went on about how Ladybug opened up to her, saying that Chat Noir is very possessive and a bit creepy and Ladybug can't wait for Hawkmoth to be defeated once and for all so she can end it and never see him again. And Alya ate it up like the gullible character Astruc turned her into.

Marinette

Marinette never expected to hate something about dating Adrien Agreste: he was a freaking morning person.

He showed up before she was even awake, gently shaking her awake while softly speaking her name. She groaned, "Go away kitty, I'm tired."

"But princess, the sun is out and…" He trailed off as he noticed her attire. "Are those Chat Noir pajamas?"

"Shut up, they're warm and look nice."

"You're right about that," he smirked as her face lit on fire, trying to hide her face in her pillow. Learning that he could make her blush on this side of the mask pleased him so much and he loved seeing her flustered. "So are you going to get out of bed? Or should I just skip breakfast?"

She turned her head to glare at him. "Do that and I will smack you."

He gave her a grin, "No, you won't, you love me."

"You are a dork and yes, I will hit you even though I love you." Groaning, Marinette got out of bed, her hair falling down loose in a bit of a mess. She went on her tiptoes and gave him a quick kiss, "Give me a minute to make myself more presentable, then I will meet you in the kitchen." Her eyes stared into his as her expression became serious, blue piercing into the green of his eyes. "And just so you know, words have not been invented for what I will do to you if you ever joke about not eating again."

Adrien felt a chill go down his spine as he quietly nodded his understanding. Plagg and Tikki silently laughing from Tikki's perch. Marinette just smiled sweetly and headed to her bathroom, leaving her terrified kitty to find his own way down the stairs as Plagg cackled, "She has access to a miracle box, wonder which one she will use?"

Adrien simply glared at the kwami before heading down to the kitchen, where he encountered Tom. "Hello son, have a seat." Adrien swallowed hard as he sat down.

Due to the very graphic description of what Tom would do to Adrien if he ever hurt Marinette, we are going to fast forward to half an hour later to when Marinette came downstairs and found Adrien shaking on a chair, pure terror on his face. "Papa!" she shouted angrily marching down to the bakery.

Alya

She finished her exam early, so she headed to the library and worked on her article about Chat Noir being an akuma. She never expected Mylene to come over to her, "Hey Alya, got a sec?"

"Yeah what's up?" No, Alya did not look up.

"We are planning a surprise for Lila here at the school and was wondering if you could get her here without spoiling the surprise. Oh and live-stream it on the Ladyblog?"

"Yep and yep, just make sure it's good."

Mylene nodded and walked away, an evil smile that shall never be animated unless Astruc wants your kids to have nightmares (seriously, nightmare Adrien still creeps me out) spread across her face. "Oh, it'll be a good surprise for sure."

Marinette

She stomped down the stairs to the front counter, where Sabine gave a kind smile. "Good morning sweetheart."

"Good morning Maman, where is Papa?" she asked, glancing around.

"In the bakery? Why?" Then it came to her, "So is he just sitting there frozen?"

Marinette glared at the door to the kitchen, "Yep."

"Well, he is your father and wants to protect you. it's something you will never be able to stop, dear." Sabine smiled at her, "Now it is my turn." Marinette frowned, prompting Sabine to continue, "Be prepared to be safe in sex." Marinette's jaw dropped, her facing getting red as she tried to sputter out a denial. "Dear, I saw those magazines with him modeling in those swimsuits in your room. And we both know you are a mature young woman, so I just want you to have these just in case okay?" Marinette cringed as her mother handed her a pack of birth control pills. "Just follow the instructions on the side okay sweetheart? I do want grandchildren, but not too early."

Marinette nodded, quietly turning to go back up the stairs as her mother smiled, grateful she saved her husband from her daughter's wrath and got that conversation out of the way.

The embarrassed girl stashed the pills in her bathroom, throwing some cold water on her face. Finally somewhat not embarrassed, she went back down to the kitchen to shake her boyfriend out of his daze. "Snap out of it, it was just a simple death threat."

"If Sandboy comes back, don't be surprised if your dad is chasing me with a rolling pin." Marinette snorted, setting about to make them breakfast. It was now Adrien noticed she was still wearing her Chat Noir themed pajamas, her hair down. She turned and caught him staring, giving him a smirk as he looked away, his face burning with embarrassment.

"What? You can look at me you know? I'm just staying in my pajamas for the day since we are hanging out here." Her grin grew wider, "Unless you are embarrassed about what you were thinking about?" His face grew redder, as Marinette laughed, letting him off the hook only a little. "So any reason why my dad was so set on threatening you and my mom telling me to not have a teen pregnancy?"

Adrien coughed, then said quietly, "I may have mentioned to them that I wanted to ask you to be my girlfriend and asked for their blessing."

Marinette smiled, "And yet I haven't heard a question directed to me about that yet."

"Okay then." Adrien stood up and took her hands, looking into her eyes. Marinette felt herself starting to turn to goo, her knees buckling just like they used to. "Purrincess, will you please be my girlfriend?"

Marinette didn't reply with words, tackling him to the ground. She kissed him, "Of course you silly cat." She giggled as Adrien cheered.

Kagami

She was not a stalker. She had been simply just following Luka around all week long to try and figure out the best way to reach out to him. The guitarist has been keeping to himself since Marinette turned him down, not talking to anyone. Kagami liked him since she first met him, but he was still just a friend that she wanted to help.

That was the reason why she figured out his weekly schedule, his likes, dislikes, favorite places. No, she is not a creepy stalker with a crush, just a concerned friend.

Lie-la

She walked out of the school with Alya, their exam finally over. Now she can go home to troll on Archive Of Our Own to her black shriveled heart's delight, hating on all the happy Marinette fanfics. Alya's eyes lit up, "Hey, can we meet at school tomorrow for another interview?"

Lie-la shrugged, "Sure, but why school? Why not your house?"

Alya gave her a shrug back, "Doing it at the school might make it look more professional."

"Okay, sounds good!" Lila grinned as the Ladyblogger walked away. Alya was definitely going to post that story, causing Ladybug or Chat Noir to get akumatized. It was all going according to plan.


	11. Chapter 11:Exposed

"**Don't be bemused, it's just the news. No further developments with the trial of Chloe Bourgeois have been revealed, but we will have Jagged Stone on the show later today for an exclusive interview. With the famous rockstar will be the fashion designer MDC, who will finally reveal their true identity today. Stay tuned for more news."**

Lila, the female version of Mysterio I didn't know I needed

She woke up, showered and got dressed. Her mother already left for her work, leaving a note on the kitchen table for her to have a good day. Lila threw it in the garbage, the same place she threw every other note her mom left her. She pulled out some frozen waffles and placed them in the toaster. As she waited, Lila poured herself a cup of coffee.

She had a busy morning with Alya expecting her at the school and breakfast was the most important meal of the day. Thinking about deceiving her classmates could wait.

Marinette

For once, she was eager to wake up. Marinette felt a little bounce in her step as she got down from the loft. She had about two hours to get breakfast, get ready and get to the studio. Jagged had told her it would be a simple meet and greet. She wouldn't have to answer any difficult questions, just say her name and talk about working with Jagged.

Adrien would be there soon, but she still had time to get dressed before he showed up. They had spent the beginning of the day hiding out at the bakery, playing Ultra Mecha Strike 3 without stopping until lunch. It was at that point that she declared they needed to do something else. Adrien had also explained the plan he made with Alix to reveal Lila, who had recently been woke to the truth behind Lila.

The pair had decided to go for an early patrol, racing across city rooftops as civilians shouted out in awe. They agreed the status quo between Ladybug and Chat Noir would not change, the rule that dating is only allowed as civilians. This prevented Hawkmoth from trying to use their romantic relationship against them. On the other hand, they still couldn't go public as a couple before talking to Adrien's father to avoid stepping on any toes. Long solution short: no relationship stuff in public, especially around Alya.

As she headed down the stairs, she smiled as she heard her mother greet Adrien. Today was the last day before his father returned, and Marinette wished she could spend the whole day with him. But they both had their jobs cut out for them to ensure the downfall of Lila's lies. She starts making breakfast, setting out some cookies and cheese on a plate for the kwamis. The second she set the plate down, a black blur zipped past her. "CHEEEEESSSE!" Plagg scooped up a piece, twirling around in the air as if it was a dance partner. "Oh, how long it's been since I smelled your glory! It has been a horrible empty…"

"Twenty minutes," an annoyed Adrien interrupted. "Twenty minutes since I fed you a full wheel of cheese."

Marinette did her best not to giggle as Adrien continued to glare at the kwami, who did what she could call the kwami version of a shrug. "Marinette's cheese is better. She offers it with love and concern, you just use it to bribe me."

Marinette couldn't hold it in anymore, bursting out laughing. Adrien turned to her, a look of betrayal on his face. "I'm sorry, it's just you look cute when you were annoyed with Plagg just now."

"My lady and my kwami against me? What has this poor stray done to deserve this treatment?" Adrien wailed, sagging in defeat.

Marinette walked over to him and went on her tippy toes, planting a kiss on his forehead. "You are not a stray, you are my kitten and always will be." Adrien grinned, scooping her up in his arms and off the ground. Marinette giggled, "Adrien, put me down! I need to get back to the stove!" He kissed her, then set her back down again.

"So interview?" he asked curiously.

"At eleven, so make sure you have the stream ready to go so you can play it when Alya is live streaming. That should tie everything together nicely."

Adrien nodded as he texted the details for the news live stream to Max, who replied with a thumbs up. "Then we are all set. After breakfast, I'll meet with Alix and the others to make sure everything is set up for the surprise. Hopefully, Alya keeps streaming when it starts."

Marinette pursed her lips as she turned off the stove, bringing the eggs and bacon over to the table. "Alya is a journalist at heart, if she smells a story, she won't give up until she finds out all of the details. Then she will post it for the public to see and know." She looked him in the eyes and nodded at the food, the unspoken message clear: eat or I ram it down your throat. She smirked as he immediately began wolfing down the food, knowing full well he did not want to face her wrath. If only exposing Lila's lies was as easy as getting Adrien to eat.

Jagged Stone

The rock star was pumped, excited to announce his album and world tour to the world, as well as showing off the talented Marinette Dupain-Cheng. As far as Jagged was concerned, she was family and no more cared for family than Jagged Stone. "Marinette! How is my favorite niece?"

Marinette grinned, Jagged's enthusiasm was contagious and hard to resist. "I'm doing great! A little nervous, but excited!"

"Don't worry, if that reporter tries anything underhanded, I shut them down and end the interview on the spot." Marinette smiled at him thankfully, feeling the tension ease a little. Jagged always stayed true to his word she knew and would keep her safe from any journalist looking for juicy gossip. She hoped Adrien and the others were ready.

Adrien

"Ready to go?" Max turned to Adrien and gave him an affirmative nod before double-checking the video. The minute it was over, it would close and the live stream would open to the MDC reveal, digging Lila's grave a little deeper. Mylene was outside on lookout duty while Ivan was outside the school. His role was to follow Lila and Alya in the school once they were ahead of him enough so he wouldn't appear suspicious. Once the two girls were inside, he would keep the doors shut so they wouldn't leave before the presentation was over.

"Unless she has an E.M.P., she won't be able to do anything without creating more suspicion," Max inputted.

"E.M.P.?" Adrien gave Max a confused look, not at all following the tech genius. Alix also tilted her head, more lost than Adrien.

"Electromagnetic pulse," Max explained.

Adrien's eyes widened with understanding, exclaiming, "Oh you mean an emp!" Behind him, Alix started nodding as well.

Max shook his head, used to the rest of his friends being unfamiliar with such terms. "No, it's E.M.P."

"No, it's emp. Your way sounds weird," Alix interjected.

Max opened his mouth to reply, only for Mylene to burst in. "Guys, Lila and Alya are almost at the school entrance," she warned. Without another word, the lights went out and Alix took her hiding place next to the projector, ready to pull off the cover once Alya closed the door. The others hid along the back wall in the shadows, ready to block the exit should Lila try to run before Ivan gets there to hold the door shut.

"I am always willing to tell you more about Ladybug and our friendship, Alya. I know how important it is to your blog." Everyone scowled at the sound of Lila's voice, relieved that her lies will soon be revealed.

"Thanks, Lila," We just need to go in here." Adrien felt a buzz, no doubt a notification that Alya had begun live streaming. He wondered what she titled the stream. The door opened and as it closed, Alix removed the cap off the projector, revealing the thumbnail of their video: Lila's travel log. They could hear the two girls gasp, both no doubt realizing the document was authentic. Max pressed play on his laptop and the video started with the Jagged Stone interview.

"Mr. Stone, what can you say about Lila Rossi?" Adrien's voice came from off-camera.

The rock star gave a confused look. "Who?"

"The girl who saved your cat on an airplane runway and you wrote a song about her to thank her."

"Kid, I've never owned a kitten, I'm allergic. And I certainly will never write a song about a minor, that would get me in a lot of trouble."

The video cut to Thomas Astruc sitting behind his desk in his office. "Mr. Astruc, when you were writing the Ladybug movie, is it true that Lila Rossi helped write the Ladynoir scenes?"

Astruc blink, clearly confused by the question. "I know no Lila Rossi, the Ladynoir scenes were actually influenced by the affection Chat Noir clearly has for Ladybug. I had a team of A-list writers helping, but no one by the name of Lila Rossi."

As the final clip with Clara Nightingale played, Adrien confirmed that Alya was still streaming the whole thing. On the screen, Clara was clearly confused by the question asked. "I know no one named Lila Rossi, I wrote the song for Ladybug and Chat Noir alone." With that, the video ended, leaving the room in a moment of silence.

Alya started to turn towards Lila when Max switched to the news broadcast, causing Alya to turn back to the screen. "And I hear you brought the secretive MDC with you today," Nadja Chamack commented. "Any chance we will get to meet them?"

Jagged Stone nodded, a wide grin on his face. "You bet and I'm very excited to introduce you to her." Nadja motioned for him to continue so Jagged leaned back and stretched his arm back towards backstage. "Presenting Ms. Marinette Dupain-Cheng, also known as MDC, my favorite fashion designer and the one who created my awesome album covers."

Marinette walked out and sat on the couch next to Jagged, waving shyly at the crowd before turning to face Nadja. Back in the classroom, Alya screamed, "What the fuck?"


	12. Chapter 12: Boxed In

Kim

Kim stared at the livestream in horror. Lila had manipulated everyone in the class, even him. Did this mean her feelings for him were a lie too? On their own accord his fists balled up. He was unable to stop the tears from falling as rage and heartbreak swirled around inside of Kim.

Adrien

Lila pointed at Adrien frantically, sputtering out, "It was all faked, Alya! Marinette and Adrien are trying to ruin my life by tricking you!"

"How stupid do you think I am!" Alya screamed, her face red with rage. "I trusted you with everything and you spat it back out in my face. My entire career might be over, all because of you!" Alya pointed a finger at Lila accusingly. Lila backed away, staring at the finger like it was a gun.

Ivan and Mylene looked at each other, then with a silent nod from Ivan, they left the room. Adrien didn't blame them. Alya was more focused on blaming others at the moment, ignoring her own responsibility in the matter. She jabbed a finger into Lila's chest, "Did you seriously think you could get away with this?"

Lila suddenly narrowed her eyes at Alya, a smirk forming on her face, "Yes, I did and I have. I owe it to you, really, because you were all so eager to believe some amazing story from a stranger instead of your own best friend."

"I thought we were friends!" Alya spat, seething with fury. Adrien looked around, keeping an eye out for butterflies attracted to the angry blogger. "And you dared to lie about being Ladybug's best friend to her favourite blogger?"

"If you are Ladybug's favourite blogger, then why didn't she tell you about my lies?" Alya didn't answer, looking clearly stung by the comment. Seeing her chance, Lila pressed on, "Why didn't she ever tell you the truth about my lies? She told Adrien on my first day, making it very clear to him that we weren't friends. Now that I think about, Adrien didn't tell you until just now. Why did he take his sweet time telling his _friends _the truth?"

Alya didn't reply, staring at her feet as she considered all the facts Lila had laid before her. Lila smirked and walked out the room, only to find an angry Alix blocking her way. Lila put a hand on her hip, raising an eyebrow at her. "What? Are you planning on keeping me here until I confess my sins or beg for forgiveness?"

"You owe everyone an apology," Alix growled.

Lila facepalmed towards Alix, stating dryly, "You're right. I am sorry. I'm sorry you people are so stupid that you can't use a simple google search to see the facts. I'm sorry that you don't know that napkins can't cut your eye out. I'm sorry that you are such terrible friends that you would abandon the one person that had been there for you every single time." She turned to look at Adrien, smirking as she added, "Or be so oblivious to the fact your friend is clearly hurting until after they almost get akumatized." Looking back at Alix, she dropped one final bomb, "I'm sorry that it takes petty jealousy over a boy to finally cause you to wake up and realize the truth. Or did you make it up at first to justify your jealousy? I honestly don't care, Kim would have picked me over you, regardless."

Alix snapped and lunged at Lila, only for Adrien to grab her. "Alix, she isn't worth it," Adrien insisted. He did his best to restrain her, Max coming over to help him as Lila left the room without resistance. Eventually Alix stopped thrashing, prompting the boys to release her. A single tear was rolled down her cheek. "Are you okay?"

"She isn't wrong," Alix admitted. "Everything she said was true. We fell for every lie, every manipulation since she first came here. It's true." Adrien placed a comforting arm around her.

Max frowned, staring in the direction Lila left. "When did any of us almost get akumatized?" He shook his head, it wasn't the right question to ask. "I mean, related to Lila recently?"

Adrien frowned, "Not anything that I know of. Why?"

"What does Lila know that we don't? And how would she know of an akumatization that happened with no other witnesses?" The questions weren't asked of anyone in particular. Suddenly, Max took off after Lila, ignoring Adrien's call for him to come back.

Alya finally stalked over and stared Adrien down through tear-streaked eyes. "You've got a lot of explaining to do," she growled.

Marinette

Marinette kept a kind smile on her face as she focused on the questions asked of her. She did her best not to let her thoughts stray to Adrien and the others at school, concerned that their plan may have not worked and that Lila was still deceiving everyone. Finally the interview was over and she was able to look at her phone. There were a few messages waiting for her.

Adrien: Lila has been outed. Everyone knows the truth now

Marinette sighed in relief, thankful that it was finally over. There were a few messages from her other classmates, all bumbling apologies for not standing by her side and believing Lila over her. Marinette scrolled past them, not ready to start forgiving people just yet.

Penny came up behind her with a wide smile on her face. "Both Jagged's and your social media accounts are blowing up. Your brand's popularity is soaring. Congratulations, Marinette."

Marinette thanked her for the praise as she headed out of the room, eager to get to the school and meet up with Adrien. If she could transform, she could be there in just a couple of minutes. But as she exited the news channel's studio, Marinette was shocked to see the crowd of reporters waiting for her to leave.

Marinette felt frightened by all the cameras flashing her way; she wasn't used to getting this kind of attention as Marinette. Her feet froze in place as the numerous questions were shouted at and Penny walked to her side, each of them holding one of her arms as they led her safely to his car. Leaving the shouting reporters behind, Jagged's driver drove off. "Welcome to famous life kid!" Jagged grinned and Marinette realized the mistake she had made. She was famous now and reporters would be following her everywhere.

Lila

"There is a room full of pathetic losers ready to be akumatized. Don't waste this wonderful opportunity." Lila scrolled through her news feed as soon as she hung up. Marinette and Adrien may have exposed her, but she knew of a few ways to turn things around, not to mention having powerful allies with connections.

Just as Lila took a step down the stairs, on her way out of the school when someone grabbed her hand. The scowl settled on her face even before she turned to face an angry Max.

"Who were you talking to just now?" It wasn't a question but a demand.

Lila shook his hand off, glaring at him, "Back off four-eyes. I'm done toying with you and your pathetic classmates. You all were so simple to manipulate, it wasn't even a challenge."

"Why did you say that we were ready to be akumatized?" Max narrowed his eyes as he questioned, jumping in front of Lila to keep her from walking any farther. "What does that have to do with anything?" Suddenly Max's eyes flashed wide open as he realized the truth. "You are working for Hawkmoth, aren't you?"

Lila stared him down, her eyes raging with anger. "Be careful what you choose to say next," she growled, a deadly glint appearing in her eyes.

"You purposely tried to get us all akumatized! All of this was for Hawkmoth!" Max's clenched fists were the only part of him that didn't shake with rage. " Why? What did he offer you?"

"Nothing a simpleton like you would understand,'' she growled before turning away from him, looking back at her phone as she began to walk away.

Max lunged forwards and moved to grab onto Lila's phone from her hand. "I'm going to expose your connection to Hawkmoth!" He gripped the phone tightly, trying to pull it out of her hand.

Lila scowled as she tried to rip the phone away from him. Max did his best to hang on to the phone, but Lila was stronger than him. It didn't take long for Lila to jerk her phone away from his grasp and shove Max down the stairs. Max landed on his right arm with a sickening crunch, gasping out in pain. He hadn't noticed when his glasses fell until Lila's form blurred in his vision . "Help," he pleaded to her.

Lila didn't waste a second pitying him, rushing down the stairs. Lila stomped on his glasses as she raced past, shattering the high tech lenses into tiny pieces. Max tried to sit up, but only to fall back down in even more pain. As Max lied at the bottom of the stairs, he felt the physical pain and a consuming rage against Lila build up.

Max never realized his powerful negativity attracted the akuma until it entered his broken glasses and a sinister voice spoke inside of his mind. "Gamemaster, I am Hawkmoth. People around you are fools and too blind to see the truth. I can grant you the power to test them and find out who is truly worthy. All you need to do in return is bring me Ladybug and Chat Noir's miraculous!"

"Yes, Hawkmoth," A dark shadow enveloped the boy at his acceptance, the akuma's power corrupting him. As Gamemaster began to emerge, a dark shadowy energy moved to consume the school.

Adrien

"Alya, just stop for a moment," Adrien insisted. "Lila had me deceived at first too, along with everyone else."

"But you found out and didn't tell anyone else," Alya accused him, her face red from anger and crying. "Why didn't you tell anyone else about this?"

"Because I thought it would be best to avoid causing anymore akumas. Lila has been akumatized twice already after getting called out for her lies and I didn't want to cause anymore attacks," Adrien reiterated, backing away from Alya.

"Guys," Alix interrupted, the panic in her voice caused Adrien to turn his attention over to her. Only then noticing the dark energy seeping across the room, covering everything in sight like a dark fog.

When the fog cleared suddenly, it was as if Adrien was transported out of the room. After a quick survey around the room he saw that Alix and Alya were no longer around. He was alone in the middle of a cage similar to the one Sandboy had trapped him in for the first time the little boy had been akumatized. The walls beyond the bars were dark and bare, except for a speaker on the far wall. An unknown voice came through the speaker, "Welcome contestants, to the ultimate challenge. Everyone here has made mistakes in their life. I intend to test all of you in order to see who is truly competent and who is a failure. To leave, you must clear each room on every floor. Maybe you'll encounter your friends again. Let the games begin!"

Suddenly the light in the room turned off, leaving Adrien alone in the darkness, caged.

Marinette

She stared in horror at the large black structure that replaced the school. She had urged Jagged to drop her off at home, reassuring him that she would be safe. Adrien wasn't answering his phone, meaning he could either be in a fight or inside the mysterious box structure.

Marinette waited for the car to leave before avoiding the entrance to her home and rushing into a nearby alley to transform; unaware of a pair of eyes watching her.

Jac followed the girl that the dumb blonde had tried to keep away from him into the alley, careful to remain unnoticed. He had rushed to the studio after seeing her on the news earlier. He was able to catch up to her as she left and followed at a safe distance in his motorcycle. No one stops him from getting what he wants.


	13. Chapter 13: First Moves

Ladybug swung out of the alleyway and onto a building across the street from the school. The akuma hasn't made any declarations and its motive and powers are currently unclear. It remained inside the black structure that was now slowly extending to the sky. It had to be Lila that was akumatized, trapping those who had exposed her.

As she was observing the entrance and sifting through all the other miraculous powers that might be able to get her inside. _I could use Kaalki, but I don't know the layout inside. Plagg is with Adrien and I wouldn't even know the effect of his powers on this building. _Suddenly her planning was interrupted by a loud booming voice.

"_Ladybug_!" She looked up to see a hologram of Gamemaster being projected onto the side of the building, by, what she assumed, was a hidden projector. "If you want to gain entry into my Tower of Judgement, you have to bring me someone: Lila Rossi."

Ladybug scowled at him, then shouted "I can't bring you a civilian just so you can do god knows what to them, even one as cruel as Lila." _If Lila isn't the akuma, then who? They seem to be male, could it be Adrien? _A shiver ran down her spine at that thought, _please don't let it be Adrien._

The hologram of Gamemaster visibly chuckled . "Then I guess I will just have to kill Chat Noir then. It won't be hard seeing as he isn't transformed right now." His laughter only increased as he saw her eyes go wide with shock. "Yes, I know Chat Noir's secret identity, and unless you want Hawkmoth to learn it, you better bring me Lila Rossi! And no one else!"

The hologram vanished, leaving Ladybug standing in horror. Adrien was a hostage somewhere inside of the school, his ring possibly in the possession of Gamemaster. She had to act quickly if she was going to be able to save him and his miraculous before Hawkmoth found out his identity. She quickly dashed into the alley next to the bakery and pulled herself up onto her balcony, dropping her transformation as she landed. Tikki gave Marinette a concerned look, "Marinette, slow down. You need to think rationally."

Marinette nodded at the Kwami's wise words. "You are right, Tikki. The only way Gamemaster is going to let me in is if I only bring Lila with me. Meaning I have to get creative in sneaking in another ally to assist us in this fight."

She frowned as she climbed down into her room and pulled the miracle box out of its hiding place. Opening the miracle box, Marinette looked at the different miraculous available to her, collecting them as she looked at them. The monkey, the mouse, the horse, the ox, the tiger, the fox, the turtle, the bee, _ah there is it: the dog_. She pulled out the collar, debating on who would be able to wield it successfully. She grinned as she thought of the perfect person to use it. Placing all of the miraculous she collected from the box and climbed back onto her balcony. "Tikki, spots on," Marinette summoned her, transforming into Ladybug again.

Jumping off of her balcony railing, Ladybug set off to find Sabrina Raincomprix and set her plan into motion. In her rush to escape, not once did she think about the open miracle box she had left behind, unattended in her room and with an unwelcome guest. One who was now inspecting the miracle box and the remaining miraculous curiously.

Adrien

"Plagg, claws out!" Adrien called out, punching his ring forward and waited for his transformation. But Plagg didn't fly into it and not even one snide remark was made about being too tired. "Plagg?" Adrien called out as his heart began to race. "Where are you? This isn't funny, you know I hate being caged up!" he shouted into the darkness, gripping the bars tightly.

The bars suddenly slid up, the cage around Adrien going away as he was forced to let go of the bars. "What's going on?" he asked, not expecting to get an answer from the akuma that had trapped him.

Gamemaster's voice came over the hidden speakers in the room, "I decided I want to see how far you can get without superpowers. Is it the powers that make the hero or is there actually something special about you."

Adrien's eyes widened as he realized Gamemaster knew his secret identity, quickly ensuring that he still had his ring. "Where is Plagg!" Adrien demanded as his face shifted into a scowl.

"Your kwami has been transported somewhere else," the Gamemaster informed him. "But I wouldn't worry about him right now if I were you. I feel like the muggers are a bigger problem." Suddenly, the lights turned on, revealing the room to Adrien as a door clicked behind him.

He whirled around to see that a door had opened, as three street gang members walked in and started to surround him, two males and one female. One male carried a knife while the others had brass knuckles on, their clothes tattered with scars and tattoos lining their arms.

Adrien backed away from them slowly, searching the room for a way to defend himself but came up empty. Without warning, another door opened, revealing a hallway unblocked by more thugs.

Without hesitation, Adrien ran down the hallway, the gang following close behind him. Suddenly, everything froze, Adrien found himself unable to move as Gamemaster spoke up again. "Ah I forgot to mention, you never rolled the dice yet." In front of Adrien, a twenty sided die materialized, dropped to the floor and started to roll. It landed with the twenty facing up. "_Impossible_!" Gamemaster shouted in frustration. "No one gets a twenty on the first roll! No matter, your luck will run out soon enough."

Adrien smirked as he ran down the hallway, leaving the thugs behind in the dust. _Dating the embodiment of luck seems to have a stat boost that you don't know about. _His luck didn't last long enough though before Adrien found himself at a dead end. He whirled around, the sound of the heavy feet running down the hall towards him as he waited defenseless and alone, Gamemaster's victorious laughter boomed over the speakers.

Ladybug

She landed outside of the downtown library, careful to avoid anyone that might spot her and try to follow her. Sabrina was inside as she had been for the last few weeks, studying by herself. Ladybug felt a pang of guilt inside her heart as she turned to hide in the alleyway. "Tikki, spots off."

The kwami zipped out of her earring and gave Marinette a skeptical look. "Are you sure she is the right choice to use the dog miraculous?"

Marinette grinned as she held out the box containing the collar, slipping inside of the library unnoticed. "No one else is more qualified than her for this mission," she whispered as she peered around a bookshelf. Just then, she saw Sabrina getting up to put away the book she just finished reading and move to get a new one. "Now is our chance to give her the miraculous without her noticing. Have you filled Barkk in on the plan?"

Tikki nodded her head in acknowledgement. "She promised to behave as long as she gets a treat later." The kwami made a face, adding "Barkk's bones are more disgusting than Plagg's cheese."

Marinette grinned as she began to sneak over to the table where Sabrina was sitting just moments ago. Well, she attempted to sneak across. Marinette didn't even make it a meter before she tripped over a book left on the floor. As Marinette hit the ground, she lost her grip on the box and it flew across the floor. Marinette watched the box with wide eyes as it rolled until it came to a stop right in front of Sabrina's chair. "I guess luck is still on our side," she whispered with a smile as she snuck away before Sabrina got back.

Tikki still seemed skeptical of Marinette's plan. "Are you sure Sabrina will help? After what happened with Chloe, she might not be willing to help us out."

Marinette gave Tikki a reassuring smile as she held out a cookie for the kwami to recharge. "Sabrina is a good person, although a bit gullible when it comes to Chloe. I believe she will do the right thing, Tikki. Now we have to hurry and collect the other recruits." Marinette shuddered, then added, "And then find Lila, even if i have to throw her over my shoulder and drag her there myself. Tikki, spots on!" Transformed once again, Ladybug swung off to find Ivan and Mylene.

Plagg

The black cat kwami sat in a dark room, two other kwami's sitting across from him. "So explain to me again why you actually want to help Hawkmoth?"

Nooroo sighed, "It's so his family can be together again. Master feels so much pain everyday and we can't help but feel it."

"He just wants to save the woman he loves," Duusu added in a dramatic voice as she raised a hand to her forehead. "It's so romantic!"

"Have you two seriously forgotten what happened with the last moron who tried to use the miracle wish for their own intentions? We are talking about cosmic consequences here; timelines breaking, alternate universes colliding, the end of the world!"

The two captive kwamis looked at him blankly, having been so conditioned to the point where they stopped caring about the bad after effects from their past. "I know I am supposed to be sorry, but I am not" Nooroo said. "But we have been on our own for years, no one else to protect us but each other. We have been used for things that would horrify you that keep us awake at night. So sorry if I am a bit damaged from the horrors I have been used for that when a man decides to use us to save his wife, I agree to help," the kwami spat. "What we are helping Hawkmoth do will help save a life."

Plagg hissed at Nooroo, "He is using you to hurt innocent people and in most cases, those people end up dead."

"Ladybug always brings them back to life," Duusu retorted. "Our master would never want to actually hurt someone."

Nooroo nodded his head in agreement, adding, "And sometimes the akumas go after bad people who deserve it. If Ladybug and Chat Noir would just give up their miraculous, everyone would be happy. That's all our master wants, for everyone to be happy. No more sadness or pain will happen after he makes his wish."

Plagg glared at them, deciding not to bother trying to reason with the two kwamis any more. He turned around and zipped away from them without another word, attempting to fly towards the closed window so that he could phase outside. Duusu's eyes widened with understanding at what he was trying to do and she yelled to Plagg, "No, don't try it!"

But her warning came too late as Plagg hit the invisible barrier, zapping him and knocking him back to where the other kwamis were still sitting. "What the heck was that?" he hissed at them, his fur sticking up in rage and green flames burning behind his eyes.

"That's the reason why we can't leave," Nooroo said softly. "Master has put some kind of magic spell on us. We must stay in this room or by his side at all times."

Plagg growled, "Then where is this master of yours? Because I have some choice words for him!"

"Nooroo, dark wings rise!" Nooroo zipped into the shadows, causing a brief flash of purple. Plagg felt himself holding his breath as Hawkmoth stepped out of the shadows, grinning evilly at the kwami of destruction. "Then why don't we chat?" he chuckled as he strode over to Plagg with a malicious smirk.

Sabrina

She had had a tough time after the Miracle Queen akuma attack, often bullied due to her closeness to Chloe. Lila had even started to spread a rumor that, because of her connection to Chloe, Sabrina was a secret agent for Hawkmoth spying on all of them. Not everyone believed it, telling Lila that it was okay and Sabrina wasn't a threat to them. But Sabrina still caught a few people giving her suspicious looks and doing their best to avoid her.

Chloe has shut herself in her father's hotel, not replying to any of Sabrina's messages or calls. Sabrina had tried to visit her at the hotel, but the staff denied her entry and kicked her outside. Now without her best and only friend, Sabrina spent most of her time in the library studying or immersing herself in a new world of people with bigger problems than her own. It was the one place where she was left alone and could feel normal for a few hours, or could even be a completely different person all together. However, today was not one of those days.

When Sabrina returned to the table she was using, she spotted a small wooden box sitting on the floor next to her chair. Examining it closer, Sabrina recognized the box as the same one Chloe once showed her: the box that contained the Bee miraculous. Sabrina glanced around the section she was in to make sure no one was watching before opening the box to see what was inside.

There was a bright flash of brown as a kwami emerged from the miraculous inside, a small dog-like creature. Chloe had described her former kwami Pollen as similar to a bee. The small dog kwami gave Sabrina a smile as she greeted her, "Hello Sabrina! I am Barkk, the dog kwami, and I can grant you the ability to guard your allies from danger and keep them safe from harm. You must use the powers I can grant you to help Ladybug stop the akuma. Then when the mission is complete, you must return the miraculous to her."

Sabrina's eyes flashed from the collar in the box to Barrk and back again. Then she answered flatly, "No."

Jac

After Ladybug left again, Jac climbed out of his hiding spot from under her lounge. Finding out the baker's daughter was actually Ladybug was a surprise, but a welcome one. He managed to video the entire transformation on his phone to keep as leverage. That's when he remembered the mysterious box from the Miracle Queen akuma attack and how all the miraculous jewels that granted powers were stored inside it.

Jac managed to sneak inside of the bakery and after a short search, he found Marinette's room and began to poke around it. He was about to give up when he heard a _zip _and a thud on the ceiling. Jac hid as Marinette opened the trapdoor above her bed, climbed down the ladder, went over to the...and pulled out the box. She removed a few miraculous and then left it open in the middle of the room before climbing back out onto the roof and swinging away.

Now he had the chance to choose any miraculous he wanted, granting him a superpower like Ladybug and Chat Noir. But which to choose? Guess we will have to wait until the next chapter to find out.


	14. Chapter 14: Assemble Your Party!

Ladybug

Ladybug swung off in the direction of her next destination, the studio where Aurore and Mireille were preparing to go live with the forecasts for the next week. The two girls were busy chatting in the backstage area, having set up their own little lounge area in one corner. The backstage of the studio was poorly lit, making it easy for Ladybug to sneak up on the two friends.

"Aurore, Mireille," Ladybug whispered to them quietly to get their attention without anyone else noticing. The two of them looked at her surprised, opening their mouths to ask why she was there. "Sshh," Ladybug hushed, holding a finger to her lips. "Follow me outside, we need to talk."

Aurore and Mireille gave each other a confused look, then nodded at each other and followed Ladybug out to the back exit.

Once they were outside and concealed from prying eyes in the alleyway, Ladybug pulled out two boxes and held them out to the two girls. "Aurore Beauréal and Mireille Caquet, I am temporally granting you the Bee and Turtle miraculous respectively. You must use the powers they grant you to help me defeat the akuma and save the city. Once this mission is over, you will return the miraculous back to me. You can't tell anyone else your secret identities or you may endanger yourselves and your families."

The two girls nodded as they accepted the boxes. "What is the plan?" Aurore asked eagerly, a confident grin etched on her face.

"Your kwamis will tell you what the plan is and where to meet me," Ladybug told them. "Now, I need to go recruit a few other heroes for this fight." She pulled herself up and out of the alleyway, leaving the two girls behind as they opened up the boxes.

Her next destination was the Couffaine boathouse, where Juleka was on the top deck going over a few music sheets. Ladybug landed on the roof, startling the goth girl. "Juleka Couffaine, I am temporarily loaning you the tiger miraculous to help me save Paris from Hawkmoth," Ladybug said, holding the box containing the miraculous out to her. "Once the mission is over, you will need to return the miraculous back to me."

Juleka was speechless as she took the box from Ladybug, then looked at her and asked in a firm voice, "What am I supposed to do?"

"Your kwami will fill you in on the plan and where to meet me," Ladybug told her. "I have a few more things to take care of before we go after the akuma." After receiving a nod of confirmation from Juleka, Ladybug swung off to find her last pair of chosen heroes.

Thankfully, Ivan and Mylene were not that hard to find. After they saw the akuma attack, they headed straight to the boathouse to take shelter with their friends. Ladybug dropped off the Ox with Ivan and the Mouse with Mylene, quickly giving them the same instructions she had given the others. Now, she had one last person to recruit and the very thought of asking this person for help made Ladybug feel sick. She was going to have to ask Lila Rossi for help and lend her a miraculous.

Sabrina

"No." Barkk looked at Sabrina in disbelief, as the girl opened up one of the books she just took from the shelf and began taking notes as if there wasn't a magical creature floating in front of her.

The kwami couldn't believe the girl just said no to the chance to be a superhero with magical powers. "What do you mean no?" Barkk exclaimed quietly. "You get to be a superhero and save the city! You get to fight alongside Ladybug and Chat Noir!"

Setting her pen down, Sabrina looked up from the book at the kwami and gave her a cold glare. "Chloe thought of the same thing and look where it got her. She gained no respect from Ladybug nor Chat Noir, getting slowly pushed out by them to the point where her parents were akumatized by Hawkmoth, Ladybug didn't even ask her for help."

"And that justifies siding with Hawkmoth and mind controlling the entire city and exposing other heroes?" Barkk counters, her tone harshly. "Or revealing her identity to the public and exposing the Bee miraculous to Hawkmoth?"

Sabrina huffed and leaned back, crossing her arms defiantly. "That doesn't mean I'm just gonna change my mind and help Ladybug. I'm Chloe's best friend and I will never betray her."

"Are you really her friend though? I mean, I'm sure you have your moments where you feel like she truly values you, but Chloe uses you for everything she doesn't want to do herself," Barkk pointed out.

Sabrina let out an exasperated sigh, shaking her head. "Do you seriously think you are the first person to say that to me? No one understands how long Chloe has been there for me. When we first met, I was a nobody with no friends or purpose besides studying all the time." She cracked a small smile as she continued, "Then Chloe showed up in my life, asking me to do her math homework. I was so excited that someone was finally talking to me, I didn't even care that I was doing her homework for her. She would let me hang out more often, let me even borrow some of her designer clothes at times. She is more of a friend to me than anyone else, and taking that miraculous would be betraying her."

Barkk sighed, "But she was a hero before she fell. And no one made her side with Hawkmoth, that was all Chloe's own undoing. She made a choice to help others when in need, so can you. Hawkmoth used Chloe's own emotions against her and then used her anger to hurt others. Please help me protect those who can't protect themselves from falling to the same fate as her."

Sabrina remained silent for some time, staring at the collar sitting in the box. Then she took it and put it on, leaving the library with an excited Barkk in tow.

Adrien

Adrien picked up a metal pipe off of the ground and readied himself, holding it up in a defensive position. When the first thug rounded the corner, Adrien swung the pipe as hard as he could against the man's temple. The man's knees buckled, then suddenly he shattered into pixels falling to the ground. Words lit up in the corner of Adrien's vision: fifty xp gained.

Before Adrien could comprehend the meaning of it, the other two gang members ran around the man threw a knife at Adrien, the blade barely missing his right shoulder as the woman charged. Adrien swung his pipe hard again, catching her off guard as she had her fist swung back for a wicked right hook. She shattered into pixels just like the gang member before her, and immediately another xp increase flashed in the corner of his eye. The final member of the gang lunged forward as well, only to be dispatched as quickly as the others.

Adrien sagged against the wall in relief as Gamemaster's voice boomed over a hidden speaker, "Not bad, I expected you to fail this first challenge. I guess I will have to make the next challenge even harder!" Suddenly two more men appeared, suited up and equipped with anti-riot gear. "These riot troopers will give you a beat down for sure!"

Adrien found himself backing up against the wall again, holding his pipe up defensively again. He looked for an exit, but couldn't find any. Suddenly, the roof above the riot troopers caved down and crushed them into pixels. Alix landed on top of the rumble, a laser torch in her hands. "What up, noob?" she called out to Adrien with a smirk.

He stared at her, surprised by what just happened. "Alix? How —where —what just happened?"

She shrugged at him as she jumped down from the top of the rumble pile. "Some creepy dude was talking, I ripped this torch off of a robot, fought some aliens, blew up a building. Oh, I think I stole the declaration of Independence, but that's not important."

Adrien looked at her confused, "Huh?"

A loud explosion came from behind them and Alix looked at Adrien, her face deadpan, "Come with me if you want to live!"

Ladybug

She found the liar hiding in an alleyway five blocks from the school. Lila was looking the other way as Ladybug landed behind her. "Lila," she stated cooly, wanting to get this over with as fast as possible. "I need you to come with me and stop the akuma."

Lila glared at her, "Why would I help you stop the akuma? The people trapped in that building with it just ruined my life telling lies about me. Not to mention the akuma is also after me and I am not stupid enough to go back there."

Ladybug sighed, "I can loan you a miraculous temporarily. She pulled out the horse miraculous and showed it to her. "Lila Rossi, this is the Horse miraculous. In addition to giving you extra strength and protection, you will also have the power to create a portal to a location of your choosing. It is part of a back-up plan, should one of my recruits not come through."

Lila perked up as Ladybug explained the miraculous effects to her, then narrowed her eyes again. "But you will just take it away from me afterwards and I doubt you would even consider leaving it with me at all. I am gonna need some extra incentive to even consider helping you save those horrible people." Suddenly Lila smirked as her eyes lit up, "Here's the deal."

Lila told Ladybug her demands, causing the hero to frown and scowl. Ladybug sighed, "Fine, just hold your end of the deal."

Lila grinned at her, "Don't worry, Ladybug, My word is my bond. After all, I would never lie to you!" Ladybug rolled her eyes as she handed Lila the glasses. Once Lila was transformed, they left to meet up with the rest of the team.

Plagg

Hawkmoth grinned as Plagg backed away from him; the kwami only stopped when he got close to where he hit the energy field. "You, you, you piece of shit!" Plagg hissed at Hawkmoth. "How dare you abuse the powers of miraculous to attack innocent people."

"You mean the innocents who are immediately cured and healed by Ladybug with no memory of what happened to them," Hawkmoth retorted.

"It doesn't matter if Ladybug brought them back." Plagg snarled at Hawkmoth as he growled, " You killed them and there is no excuse for that."

"Not even to save a life that was ruined by the powers of the miraculous?" Hawkmoth asked, his hand gesturing to a cylinder casket at the end of the room. "To reunite a family once more?" He turned around and walked over to the cylinder, Plagg following him in a still angry-part curious mood. "The Peacock miraculous was damaged, but my wife didn't know about that. Now she is in a coma and I need the Ladybug and Black Cat miraculous to bring her back."

The cylinder's lid slid back, revealing the person contained inside. Plagg gasped as he recognized the woman inside. It was the same woman that Plagg had seen in paintings around Agreste Mansion and was framed in pictures with Adrien. It was Emelie Agreste. _But if she is in here and Hawkmoth said she is his wife…_

Plagg whirled around to face Hawkmoth, paws crackling with forbidden cataclysmic energy. "What is wrong with you? All this time you neglected Adrien and kept him locked up because you two idiots tried to play god?"

Hawkmoth frowned, "You seem pretty concerned about Adrien's well being. Almost as if there is some kind of bond between you two. Perhaps Adrien is Chat Noir after all?"

Plagg sputtered out a retort, "Adrien? As Chat Noir? Pawlease, that kid is not Chat Noir. Not a chance," the kwami rebuffs as he continues on boldly, "Chat Noir is Adrien Agreste." Plagg's devious smirk turned into a look of horror when he realized what he just said as Hawkmoth grinned. The magical seal that protected a chosen miraculous wielder's identity was broken.


	15. Chapter 15: Annoucement

Hey everyone! after some careful consideration, I have decided to no longer be posting new stories or new chapter updates on .

I will continue posting fanfic on Archive of Our Own, where I already have several stories that are not on . AO3 is a much better posting platform and allows me to tag my stories more accurately and organize series I currently have and ones yet to be posted. I will still reply to the odd message here, but will be posting on AO3 while linking my fics on the Miraculous Fanworks Discord server, my tumblr page and the sub reddit for Miraculous fanfictions.

I have tried to link my AO3 profile here, but this site only allows links to itself and Youtube, but you can seach Shattered_Heartless on AO3 or anyone of my stories and you will find my profile, as well as links in all of my stories various Miraculous fandom communities. Feel free to DM if you have any issues.

Hope to see you all over on AO3!


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